Humans And Demons
by JustClem
Summary: On one rainy Friday afternoon, 16 years old Blake Belladonna found a yellow bird unprotected from the water drops. After closer inspection, she realized that the bird's wing was broken, and it would not survive in a weather like this. She brought the bird home to take care of it for the time being... only for it to turn into a girl. (Demon Yang AU)
1. A Raincoat and A Bird

Beacon High School was normally such a lively school. The word 'lively', of course, meant a place that weirdly resembled a prison. A place where a teenager sat in a medium-sized room along with other teenagers and was forced to learn about things against their will that probably would never be useful in their lives. Ever.

Basically, it was an average high school. Even if it was considered one of the best school in all of Remnant country.

But, today was not a normal day for anyone. Not the students, nor the teachers.

Because today was Friday.

The day where nobody payed attention in class. The day where everyone thought about what they would be doing on the coming weekends. The day where everyone was eager for school to end.

Well, everyone except Mister Port, the history teacher who was in the eleventh grade's class, currently explaining about how his great grandfather fought a helicopter during the war.

All of the student's attention wasn't on his story. They were on the object sticked onto the wall which told time. Also known as the clock.

And Blake wasn't an exception. In the left corner, right next to a window, she sat, wearing a grey shirt with a white jacket and a dark blue jeans. Her eyes switched back and forth between the window and the clock, worried that it was going to rain. But thankfully, not even a single drop of water had fell from the sky… yet.

But she knew it was going to eventually. The clouds were already growing darker and darker. It was only a matter of time before everything outside was covered in water.

Fearfully, she looked at the clock only to find it was only 2 more minutes before she was allowed to leave.

Blake sighed, knowing that worrying wasn't going to help at all. She tried to pay attention to the teacher's 'lecture', but his story was too impossible to be true that even a 4 years old kid could tell it was fake.

His ridiculous stories only served to turn her already bad mood onto an even worse mood.

And she wasn't the only one who was eager to get out of class. Although the other students had a completely different reason to want to get out of class, they all were waiting for the same bell to ring so they could finally be free from the grim, dark, scary place called high school.

Blake decided to look around the class, wanting to find something interesting about her classmates. She knew she wasn't actually going to find anything surprising, but it was better than listening to Mr. Port's stories or looking at the clock.

On the fourth row, middle seat, sat Ruby, who was toying around and stacking all of her writing tools and some of her books into one small building… at least Blake thought it was a building. It still amazed the raven-haired girl how the brunette was the second best student in her class despite her being two years younger than everyone.

It was only then did Blake realised she was caught staring by Ruby herself, her silver eyes looking at her with confusion. So she quickly looked away, pretending like the whole little ordeal never happened.

Only when she felt that she wasn't being watched did she dropped her disinterested attitude and continued observing her classmates.

She could tell that they were bored, well, more bored than usual, even at first glance. Their postures were slouching, and a few even seemed to be sleeping. And most of their eyes were either looking at the clock on their wrist, the clock on their smartphones, or the clock on the wall.

Even the very best student in her class, or even the entire school, wanted this class to end. Weiss was tapping her fingers repeatedly, something she did whenever she was impatient. Her posture wasn't as perfect as usual, even though it was far better than everyone else's in this class. It still was a rare sight to see considering that she was the heiress to the SOC, short for Schnee Oil Company.

Blake looked down, knowing that it was going to rain eventually, and it would happen before she got home.

But, fortunately, her train of thought was disrupted by the heavenly sound that was the bell ringing, sending a wave of relief and joy through out the whole large school, both students and teachers.

And, without spending any of her time engaging in her usual small talks with her friends, Blake walked out of class.

She stopped walking and check her bag for probably the fifth time, wondering if she did somehow bring an umbrella and just put it in the deep parts of her bag that she would never think to look. Instead, what she saw was the same horrifying object. The object she wished was the umbrella she wanted instead.

A bright pink raincoat with red dots surrounding it that her mother insisted she owned.

Just thinking about herself wearing this monstrosity already made her blush and sweat. She was known for lots of things, but she certainly wasn't known for a girlish, blindingly bright clothing. She didn't even remember the last time she wore a pink outfit.

So, the raincoat stayed in her bag, where she knew it belonged.

 _'Who knows? maybe the rain isn't that bad,'_ she hoped. She knew that hoping was, ironically, a hopeless thing to do, but it was the only thing she could do at this point.

When she finally was outside, she realised that hoping really was hopeless.

Somehow, during the short time-span between her walk from class and to the exit, the rain poured down.

Nearly all of the students were already holding their umbrella. Some even shared their umbrellas with their friends or romantic partners, much to Blake's disinterest. Everyone was prepared for the weather, except for her.

She saw a glimpse of a black car being park right outside of the school. It didn't take her longer than a second to know who could own such an expensive looking vehicle. _'Must be Weiss's,'_ she thought.

She was proven correct when she saw her white-haired friend. She was being escorted by a man wearing a black suit, presumably her driver, who held a small white umbrella for the girl, even when it meant that he got soaked by the rain.

Before the girl sat in her car, she whispered something to his ears, which made Blake raise an eyebrow. Afterwards, instead of getting to the driving away from the school, he walked towards the school.

Blake was interested to know what her the heiress was planning, but she was too busy dealing with a problem of her own. She could either wear the childish raincoat and get lots of unwanted stares, or she could not wear anything and get a cold, or possibly even a fever.

Because she was too stressed out facing her little dilemma, she failed to hear the sound of her name being called by a certain young brunette.

"Hi Blake!"

The girl tapped her shoulder, and it was only when her tone of voice sounded much more concerning did Blake turned to look at the caller of her name.

"Blake?"

Ruby was standing right in front of her, looking at her with her bright, warm silver eyes and a shy smile. She wore her usual clothing, which was a combination between a t-shirt and a hoodie, with the colour of it being nothing other than red.

She was putting one hand into her pocket, meanwhile her other hand was suspiciously holding a white umbrella. An umbrella which looked exactly like the one Weiss's bodyguard-driver-whatever was holding earlier on.

It took her less than a few seconds to piece together what must've happened.

 _'Weiss, you sly heiress…'_ was her only thought as she smirked internally.

Blake knew that the girl obviously didn't grow up in what people would call a 'normal' environment. It was partly why she had an interesting personality and taste in food and music. She had a way of talking that made her appear as if she was impolite, but at this point, everyone in the school knew that she never meant any of her harsh comments.

The raven-haired girl came back to reality when she realised that the redhead was waving her hand right in front of her face. "Earth to Blake…"

"Oh, h-hey…" she stuttered in response, which only served to make the younger girl chuckle.

"Um, so, I saw that you didn't bring an umbrella today, and, since our houses aren't that far apart, maybe… we can shar-?"

"Yes." Blake quickly answered, not even giving her a chance to finish her sentence, quickly accepting the offer that would potentially save her life.

To anybody else, this gesture might've been seen as rude. But it didn't appear that way to Ruby as she laughed at the now blushing raven-haired girl.

"Alright then," Ruby concluded, shielding both of them from the rain with her borrowed umbrella as they started to walk.

When Blake started to regain her composure, she finally said, "Thank you, Ruby."

The young brunette merely shrugged, giving her a shy smile. Blake gave her what was hopefully a warm smile in return.

Their walk afterwards was a little quiet, to say the least.

Ruby hadn't spoken any word since they shared the umbrella. So, to avoid anymore awkwardness, Blake decided to be the one who started the conversation, which was a little odd considering the fact that she was an introvert.

 _'Okay Belladonna, what would be an appropriate subject to talk about with Ruby,'_ she asked herself, trying to remember if anything happen out of the ordinary.

"So, Ruby, how was school today?" She ended up asking, silently cursing at herself because of how old she sounded.

But Ruby didn't seem to mind. In fact, she seemed very excited to talk about her day. "Oh, it was really fun! I thought I was gonna fail Mr. Oobleck's psychics test, but Weiss helped me study the night before so I got a B+! Even though I could never beat Weiss who always got a perfect A!"

That was when Blake remembered something that did happen out of the ordinary.

"Speaking of Weiss, why isn't she with you?" She asked, remembering how Weiss seemed to be in a hurry when she left school.

The raven-haired girl's brows furrowed as she remembered another fact, "Don't you always come to her house after school to study together?"

Ruby flinched at the word 'study', which made Blake smile. But she decided not to tease her about that subject since she, along with everyone else, always knew that they had a huge crush on each other.

If the stares and blushes didn't give it away, then the way Weiss always spoiled the brunette without any particular reason did.

"O-oh, well, she said she has this emergency business meeting thingie she needed to come to for a few days, which seems kinda unfair! I mean, Weiss is still 16, she's still a kid! She shouldn't be working yet! There's laws for this, right?"

Then, there was also the way Ruby failed to disguise how much she missed Weiss whenever the heiress left her. Even if it was for a short amount of time.

Basically, they couldn't live without each other.

"Well, I wouldn't be surprised," Blake answered nonchalantly.

"Why?" The brunette questioned.

Blake explained, "Weiss is the daughter of the richest man in the world, Ruby. She's bound not to be like any other normal kids. Besides, it's not like she doesn't want to go to these meetings."

Ruby's face softened, but the frown never left her face. So Blake added with an understanding smile, "I'm sure she misses you too," which was responded with a blush from the brunette's face.

A few moments later, Ruby said, "Isn't it amazing how she always gets perfect grades in class despite already working? It's like she's some kind of genius!"

Blake chuckled and responded with a smile, "That's odd, coming from you."

But her smile disappeared almost instantly when she saw the sight of Ruby looking down. The brunette's voice was unusually soft as she said, "No… I'm not a genius…"

Immediately and without even thinking, Blake responded with, "Ruby. Stop doubting yourself."

Afterwards, the uncertain and distraught silver met the firm and serious amber.

"You've been moved two years ahead for a reason, and that reason is because you are anything but normal. And, even when you're younger than everyone, you still manage to be the second best student in our class. So don't you _dare_ tell me, or yourself, that you're not special, Ruby."

The speech Blake gave felt a little short and too commanding.

She was never really a conversationalist to begin with, so, at first she thought that she was going to crush the young girl's confidence instead of helping her build them. But, when she saw the way her silver eyes brightened with confidence, she knew her objective was completed.

However, that didn't mean she wasn't taken aback by what the redhead was about to say next.

"You're like the sister I never had Blake… Thank you…"

Her heart had melted at the young girl's words. She didn't waste any time thinking on what her answer would be.

"You too…"

But, when she observed her surroundings, she realised that now would be the time for them to part ways.

"Well, goodbye Ruby," she said kindly, taking a step back from her only shelter as she let the water touched her clothes and skin.

"Bye Blake, are you sure you don't want me to take you there?" The brunette offered, Blake shook her head in response.

"Thanks for the offer Ruby, but I'll be fine," she told the young girl.

At first, the brunette seemed to be hesitant to leave her, which was endearing in the older girl's eyes. She gave a nod to the young girl, encouraging her to finally go back to her home.

It was only after Ruby disappeared from her sight did she realise that she was accompanied only by the rain. She shivered involuntarily, caused by the cold atmosphere she hadn't felt before due to her conversation with the brunette.

Blake looked around and found that nobody was present. After groaning, she finally pulled out her raincoat, cursing at how much it actually fit her.

 _'Thanks, Mom,'_ she sarcastically thought.

She quickly wore the hood, worried at the low chance of someone she knew seeing her like this. She walked at a fast pace, not even caring that she might slip and fall.

 _'Blake Belladonna is known for her classy black and white clothing for all of her life, and she was not going to let that title be erased because of one single raincoat!'_ she exclaimed in her head stubbornly, but then was surprised at herself by how obsessed she sounded.

Once she realised that she might be a little paranoid, her pace subconsciously slowed down. She felt relieved when she could finally saw her house, even when it was still rather far.

She practically felt herself safely tucked in her warm and cozy bed, re-reading her favourite novel for the hundredth time, with a tea placed on a small desk right next to her bed.

The simple thought of it was already enough to bring a smile to her face.

But suddenly, she saw a glimpse of a small yellow object besides her, laying in a tree. She immediately stopped herself from taking another step to look at it, knowing that whatever it was, it shouldn't be there.

 _'That's… unusual,'_ she thought, walking towards the object. Soon enough she could tell that it was a small bird.

And thankfully, she could also see that it's chest was moving slowly.

 _'Why isn't it hiding from the rain?'_ she asked herself, inspecting the small bird further, only to found that it's left wing was bent a little.

She quickly looked back and forth between the bird and the tree, starting to grasp what probably had happened. "You must've hit this tree and broke your wing," she stated.

She gently grabbed the yellow bird with both of her hands, carefully shielding it from the rain under her raincoat. It's eyes opened. They were fiery red, and they were staring into her amber ones.

At that point, Blake knew that abandoning it wouldn't be the right thing to do.

She sighed, "Alright."

So, Blake slowly put the bird in her pocket, smirking at how it quickly hid deeper into it.

"Don't worry, I'm going to take you to my place, then you can stay there until the rain stops."

Somehow, she didn't feel silly for talking to an animal. It felt actually kind of nice. Plus, so far, the bird didn't peck her or make some kind of ruckus like she saw with every other bird, and Blake was glad for it.

When she finally opened the door to her home, she asked, "Mom?" and received no response.

She felt rustling coming from her pocket, and when she looked at it, she found that the bird was peeking out of it. It's little red eyes were filled with such big curiosity. And Blake adored it.

"Mom must be at the groceries," she told the little bird.

Blake went upstairs and into her room, glad that her room wasn't as messy as she thought it would be. She put the bird on her study desk and said, "Stay here while I go get us some towels."

When she came back, she saw the bird, looking at her family picture which she kept on her desk. She smiled at the sight of it. She put a towel around the bird and around herself. Afterwards, she sat down and decided to gaze onto the picture as well.

"It was taken when we decided to move here, 5 years ago. I remembered how excited Mom was about the new neighbourhood."

She looked back on the bird and found it slowly walking towards the picture, pecking at the picture of her mother, as if it wanted an explanation.

Blake rolled her eyes, "You're extremely nosy for a bird," she commented.

She then explained, "My mom doesn't have a job, she chooses to be a stay-at-home mom, doing taxes, paying bills, or so she likes to call it 'keeping the Belladonnas together!'."

The bird chirped, causing Blake to glance at it. The bird looked at her, then it pecked at the picture of her father.

"Do you want to know about Dad?" She asked.

The bird chirped again, almost as if it understood everything she said. "I'll take that as a yes."

She looked back on the picture of her father, sighing as she tried to explain him, "Dad is… Dad is a wonderful person. He's a cop, and he takes his job seriously… He rarely comes home early, sometimes he doesn't even come home at all, probably too busy working on one of his cases that he forgets about his own family…"

Her tone became softer and quieter unexpectedly as she looked down.

Her heart felt empty and hollow when she was talking about her father. It sadly always felt that way. But she was never used to it. And she knew she probably never would.

When she thought about him, she didn't remember the happy times with him. Times where her dad taught her how to ride a bike. Times where he helped her with her homework. Times where he came to watch her play a sport match.

Maybe it was because those times never existed.

Instead her memories of her dad was filled with his absence.

Where was he when she lost her first baby tooth. Where was he when she won a poem-writing contest?

Where was he when she needed him?

Almost every time, it was anywhere else but with his own daughter.

"Sometimes I feel like… he doesn't even want to be with his family…" Her voice started to crack, "Like he doesn't want to be with _me_ …"

What the bird did next surprised the raven-haired girl. It walked towards her with it's tiny legs and lay it's head onto Blake's arms. Now she was considering if the bird actually did understand everything she said.

But the gesture succeeded in making her feel more comforted.

She shook her head, knowing that what she said was far from the truth, "I know he loves me, and I love him too. It's not like he has any choice," she said as she pet it's small head. The bird nuzzled it's head onto the girl's arm, making the girl giggle softly.

"Do you… do you wish that someone would protect you? You know, to… be there for you?" She suddenly asked.

When all she heard was it's chirp, she finally came to her senses, "What am I even doing? It's not like you can even talk to me."

The air in her room suddenly felt warmer, confusing her since it was raining outside. She looked back at the bird only to find that it was glowing.

She stood up and took a few steps back, worried that she might… die, somehow. In what way? She didn't know. But what she did know was that what she was seeing now was not ordinary.

The bird's form was starting to grow bigger and more… human.

Only after a few seconds, the room felt cold as it was before. Everything was almost fine, except for the fact that Blake was now standing right in front of a blonde girl with lilac eyes, wearing a brown jacket covered with an orange scarf.

"Wha… you…" Blake struggled to find words, too shocked by what just happened to even form a sentence.

"Actually, I am able to speak, just not in my animal form," it… no, _she_ said.

"And I know that you probably don't believe that my kind exists, but… hello there, I'm Yang, a 16 years old demon… and starting from now on, I will protect you."

* * *

 **Author's Notes : Welp, … I hope you enjoy my story… Cuz I'm gonna keep writing it. And no, there won't be any Ladybug in this fic. Ruby saw Blake as an older sister, nothing more, kay?**

 **(Edit) Okay, wow, _50+ FOLLOWERS?!_ All in just _one_ chapter?! Really?! Thanks, you guys! I, I have no idea this could happen! Don't worry, I'm already working on the next chapter. I don't think there's gonna be any schedule towards uploading my chapters. Just expect new chapters in one or two weeks. I can't always write everyday since there's school and family stuff I have to deal with. But don't worry, I won't bail on this story! Not now, not ever!**


	2. An Impossible Event

"... and starting from now on, I will protect you. Whatever you need, I will give it to you. All you have to do is ask," the blonde girl in front of her told Blake confidently.

But Blake couldn't listen to what she said. Right in front of her, standing right besides where the bird once sat on, was a girl. _'What did I just saw…'_ was Blake's repeated thought, not even knowing what to say.

 _'A bird turns into a girl… how is that possible?'_ Her panicked mind asked.

"Um… Master?" Yang asked, probably noticing how pale the smaller girl looked.

 _'And now she's calling me master…'_ the raven-haired girl thought.

The blonde asked, worried, "Are you okay?"

"No… I don't think so…" She replied weakly, noticing how badly her hands were shaking and how fast her heartbeat was.

The blonde pried, "Are you sick? Should I give you some kind of human medicine?!"

But Blake didn't want to answer what Yang was saying. She didn't even know if that really was a person. _'This must be a hallucination…'_ she thought.

Then, she looked at the rain through her window, _'Maybe it's because of the rain?'_ She asked herself.

"What should I do Master?" Yang questioned, looking around to find something useful that she could use to help the raven-haired girl.

 _'Maybe… maybe it's food poisoning…'_ Blake thought, remembering one of the articles she once read where people could see things that weren't there because of what they ate.

 _'Yeah… that must be it…'_ She finally concluded, shifting her attention back towards the also panicked girl in front of her.

 _'The woman in front of me is just in my head, and I am alone in this room. She isn't real,'_ she thought.

Once the blonde noticed that the raven-haired girl was looking at her, she immediately asked, "What do you need Master?"

"I think… I just need to sleep…" Blake said, quietly and weakly.

"Pardon me, Master?" The blonde asked, her brows furrowing in confusion.

"I think I just need sleep," the raven-haired girl repeated, this time with a stronger tone as she lay down on her bed.

"Oh, alright then Master, goodnight!" She heard the woman say, and thought, _'What a nice hallucination…'_

"Goodnight," she mumbled her reply, closing her amber eyes and let sleep finally take over her.

* * *

She didn't know how long she must've slept. She just hoped that it was long enough for the hallucination and other side effects to go away. She shifted into a sitting position and rubbed her eyes.

Then, she heard a strangely familiar voice saying, "Welcome back to reality Master!" and in an instant, she froze.

She turned towards the source of the voice and found the same blonde girl, looking at her with the same big grin on her face.

She almost screamed.

But she decided against that idea and forced herself to ask, "What the- what are you, why are you here!?"

"Because you never told me to leave?" Yang replied, somehow confused as well.

A bunch of questions popped into the raven-haired girl's head. "No, I mean, what are you? How did you get into my house? Who are you!?"

"Um… Master? You might need to cal-"

"And why are you calling me 'master' I'm not some kind of queen!"

"Okay, Mast-"

"Is this some kind of prank?! Are you one of Cardin's lackeys?!"

"Who the heck is Card-"

"Okay!" She eventually shouted, realising that calming down might be the best thing to do at first.

"…Okay?" Yang questioned, not entirely sure what she should say next.

So, after taking a few deep breaths, she commanded, "Explain… _everything_." Her voice was filled with hostility and aggression, and she was ready to defend herself if this unexpected visitor tried to do anything even slightly suspicious.

But the lilac-eyed girl didn't seem to mind her tone of voice, in fact, she seemed to understand her hostility.

"Okay… I suppose you're freaked out because humans can't change into animals… can they?" The blonde asked, her tone sounded genuinely curious despite the obvious question.

"Of course they can't!"

"Well… Do you know why I can change into one?" Yang pointed out.

"Why?!" She asked, still not entirely calmed down.

"Because I'm a demon, Master. And I heard that, in your culture, my kind is nothing more than a myth. Well… we aren't."

Her breathing started to become fast and uncontrolled again.

"But that's… that's impossible…" She said, simply because it was true… right?

But when she stared at Yang again, she saw that the blonde did look different. Her mane was so bright that it could be mistaken as glowing. Her clothes was too suspicious for a kidnapper to be wearing, and too revealing and bright for a thief to be wearing as well.

And her eyes… Blake had never seen lilac eyes before. Remnant was full of people with varieties of unique hair and eye colours. Like Ruby Rose's silver eyes, or her own amber ones.

But… her eyes… they were different.

Gently, the blonde asked with a small, comforting smile, "Do you trust me?"

"Of course I don't!" Blake answered out of instinct.

"Well, I only want to show you that I am telling the truth," She said before taking a step back.

"What are you going to do?" Blake asked, starting to let her guard up.

"Don't worry, I won't destroy everything," the blonde mentioned, but then her brows furrowed as she said, "Hopefully…"

"What?!"

Blake was going to tell her to stop whatever she was going to do, but she realised the blonde was only joking when she saw a smirk plastered on her face, and glared at the blonde.

A few seconds later a familiar warmth enveloped the room, and the same gold glow surrounded Yang. Her form started to shrink and turned less human before she, eventually, turned into the same small yellow bird that Blake found earlier that day.

Speechless was Blake as she walked towards the bird, inspecting if it truly was a real bird and not some kind of robot or stuffed animal.

But, no matter how she wished it to be, what was standing right in front of her was real.

She could see the it's… her chest growing and shrinking, a sign of breathing. The feather felt real as she gently touched it.

The bird's red eyes stared into her amber ones, and it didn't take the raven-haired girl very long to grasp what it meant.

She sighed, "Alright… I believe you…"

The bird chirped before it started to glow. Blake cautiously took a few steps back.

It took a moment, but eventually she did transform into her human form… if it really was her 'human' form.

It took her awhile, but she eventually did start asking questions, "So… all this time, there are… demons swarming all around us? Living among humans? And humans don't even _know_?"

"Some humans do, like you for instance." Her response was vague, and Blake realised it was supposedly up to her if she wanted to get answers.

"Okay… and… why do I get to know about this while others don't?" She asked again, deciding to ask simpler questions first to avoid a migraine.

"It's because you saved my life, Master. It's rare for a human to save a demon's life." And again, Yang's response only made her feel even more lost than before.

"And why is that?" She anxiously asked.

"Because we usually would prefer to live in our world, rather than in yours, no offence," Yang answered, rubbing her neck while smiling apologetically not unlike a child.

"Then why are you here?" Blake questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, demons are allowed to travel into the human world when they're 16 or older. It's just the law, don't ask why… And… I just turned 16 today."

 _'She's only a few months younger than me,'_ Blake noticed, feeling less threatened to know that she was the older one… for some reason.

"I thought you said that demons would rather stay in their own world. Why don't you?" Came her next question.

"It's because…" She paused for a moment. Her eyes looked up as she carefully constructed her next words. "It's because I'm… Curious. You see, my uncle told me lots of stories about this world. He said there was this thing called 'candies' that he thought I'd like, and a fun thing called school-"

Blake unintentionally interrupted her explanation by snickering. She couldn't stop herself from doing so, only because she heard someone other than a kindergarten teacher associating the term 'school' with the concept of 'fun'.

However, she coughed when she saw the way Yang was looking at her curiously. "Please continue," she quietly said afterwards.

"And… Just, all kinds of things. This world is so colourful and… different. I want to learn more about it, and hopefully, learn more about myself…"

"That's… very touching to hear, Yang," Blake commented, not knowing how else she was supposed to respond to the girl's speech. "But I only have one more question."

"What is it Master?" She answered eagerly.

She pondered for a moment, before asking with a hint of fear in her tone of voice, "You said you wanted to protect me, why is that?"

"Didn't you say you want to be protected?" Yang simply answered.

A blush formed on her cheeks. She felt more than a little vulnerable to know that a stranger now knew one of her deepest secrets. Secrets that not even her closest friends at her school knew.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean I _need_ to be protected!" She answered a little too defensively.

"But, Master-"

"And stop calling me that!" Blake said, cutting off Yang's words once more. "I don't need to be protected from anything, much less by you, and I am not your master!"

"Well, the thing is, you kinda are from now on…" The blonde sheepishly said.

"What?" Blake asked, wary that whatever she might say next would not be a good news for her.

"What I said to you, when we first met-"

"It was only half an hour ago," Blake corrected with the company of an eye roll.

"Right, so, what I said to you was a promise. And… I'm not supposed to break it."

"Well duh, that's what promises are supposed to be!" Blake countered.

"No, I mean, I literally cannot break it, at any cost," Yang said, her tone was still as soft as patient as before, only she now carried it with more truthfulness and desperation.

Blake eyed the blonde suspiciously, before finally concluding that she couldn't, indeed, do anything about it. "So wait, you're now my… maid?"

"Slave is more like it, Master!" Blake couldn't believe a person would say that sentence in such a happy demeanour.

The term slavery already made her nervous. She could feel her hands getting sweaty and her throat getting dry.

 _'I own this girl… I could do anything I want with her,'_ she thought, immediately overwhelmed by the endless possibilities of what she could do… the things she probably would do… It was simply a matter of time before…

"Okay. No. _Stop_. I don't want any of this!" She quickly said once she realised the dark things she would do in a future if this went on.

"What do you mean, Master?" Yang asked too innocently.

 _'This poor girl,'_ the raven-haired girl thought, feeling a bit relieved to know that out of all the people the blonde could've chosen to be her master, she chose her.

Suddenly, an idea popped into her head. "So, whatever I told you to do, you would do it, right?" She asked.

"Yep!" Yang answered, popping the 'p'.

"Even if I told you, to, for _instance_ ," she said firmly, afraid that the blonde would actually do it, "to break your other arm, would you do it?"

"Definitely!"

Blake would've shook her if not for her asking another question. "Speaking of which, how's your arm?"

"Oh, um," Yang stuttered, slightly taken aback by Blake's question. "I fixed it! Using what you humans would call magic!"

"…Magic?" Blake asked with a raised eyebrow and a sarcastic tone, resisting the urge to add, 'really?' to her question.

"Yeah! Magic!" Yang said while grinning.

 _'Like_ that's _convincing,'_ Blake thought, dismissing it as a joke and mentally adding a note to herself to keep an eye for the blonde's left arm just in case there were any serious injuries.

"Right, okay, so, you'll do whatever I say, even if it's something you don't want to do?" Blake asked, getting back to the topic.

"Everything you told me, I'll do it in a heartbeat," Yang said with no hesitation at all, which did more than just scared the raven-haired girl.

"Okay… Yang…" She started, not sure how the blonde would take her… order.

"Yes, Master?" Yang answered devotedly.

"I want you to stop being my slave."

At first, she was worried that there was an extra rule that forbid the blonde to be dismissed from being a slave. A permanent order that would forever chained Yang to be her possession for eternity.

However, when she saw Yang's jaw dropped, unable to form words, she knew that she had won this battle.

"But, Master!" She pouted, reminding Blake of a puppy.

Blake glared as she denied, "No, I am not your master anymore."

"But… Wait, what was your name again?"

The smaller girl immediately face-palmed. _'This poor girl,'_ she thought yet again, wondering why would someone be willing to give up their freedom for a person whose name they didn't even know about.

"Blake…" she said after exhaling a long breath.

"But Blake! How am I supposed to protect you if I can't be your slave?!" Yang whined, the question baffling the other girl.

"Look, there are many ways you could do it! And speaking of which, what exactly do you plan to protect me from?" She asked, putting her arms over her chest at the end of her sentence, feeling as if one question always led to another.

"Oh, um," she bit her lip, failing to disguise her distress. "Giant predators, evil… cars, dangerous humans…"

"Yeah, I'm not buying that." Blake might've just met this girl, but even she could see how terrible the blonde was at lying.

"What?" Yang asked, apparently not realising how much of a horrible liar she was… yet.

"You're lying to me. I know you are. Now tell me what you're really trying to protect me from," Blake commanded.

"Well, you see, I would, but… I'm not supposed to…" Yang admitted with a shy smile.

"As your master I _command_ you to tell me the truth!" The words came out of Blake's mouth without her even realising it.

 _'Oh no, this power is too dangerous!'_ She began to worry, remembering all those movies she watched about how power changed people. About how it corrupted them.

"But Blake, I'm not your slave anymore," Yang pointed out while smirking.

And with that sentence, Blake's mind was battling between being relieved that she didn't own the power, or angry that she didn't own it.

"And even if I am still your slave, I still cannot tell you. It's not my place to say," Yang added, much to Blake's frustration.

The human sighed. "So you want to protect me, but you won't even tell me what you're protecting me from?" She pointed out.

Yang pursed her lips, but said nothing. After a moment, she nodded.

"Blake rolled her eyes. "Great. That's going to be _so_ useful."

"Sorry, Blake…" Yang apologised, even when it wasn't her fault at all.

"Don't worry about it. It's not the first time I'm kept in the dark," Blake said off-handedly, sighing afterwards, overwhelmed by all of these new informations.

Demons exist. They had their own world. She almost owned a slave. Apparently, the truth about the world was far from what she originally thought it was.

She received a lot of informations in one evening

… and she was supposed to believe that it was all the truth.

"And, um, Blake…?" Yang asked, blinded from seeing how confused and scared Blake was.

"Yeah?" Blake replied solemnly.

"How am I supposed to treat you now? Since you're not my master anymore?" The blonde asked such a simple question. But that very question held a deeper, greater meaning than it appeared to be.

She pondered about it for a moment, but her tired brain just won't cooperate with her. "I don-"

Her sentences were quickly disrupted by the sound of the door being opened. Fortunately, Blake knew from living in this house for so long that it was the entrance door, which only meant one thing…

"Blakey! I'm home!" Kali shouted, immediately sending a wave of panic through Blake's entire body. She quickly looked back at Yang and analysed her irregular outfit.

"Crap! Yang! Quick! Change into something more appropriate!" She told the blonde.

"Why? What's wrong with my outfit?" Yang asked, being the naive person she was.

 _'You look like a fake otaku trying to cosplay her weird OC!'_ She wanted to say, but was interrupted by her mother asking, "Blake?"

"Just change!" She shouted, hoping it wasn't loud enough for her mother to hear.

And before she knew it, her mother was already right in front of the door to her bedroom, already grabbing the door handle. "Honey, is everything alright? I hear noises," she said, sounding muffled in Blake's ears because of the door distancing them.

"I'm okay Mom, don't come in for a sec, okay?" She said, before realising how suspicious she sounded.

And before she knew it, her mother opened the door, her hair slightly wet from the ongoing rain and she was still wearing her coat. "Why? Is there something..." She said with a small smile, before it disappeared when she saw who was behind her daughter.

"Blake?"

 _'Okay, okay, she wouldn't believe it if I told her she was a friend… but a friend I met in a cosplay convention…'_ Blake was already thinking, slightly confident at the very low chance that her mother would believe her, which was why she was taken aback by the woman's question, which was far from what she hoped it sounded.

"Who is that unusually attractive young lady behind you?"

"What?" Blake asked to nobody in particular, turning around only to see the sight of Yang herself, wearing a yellow t-shirt and blue jeans.

"I, um…" The raven-haired girl couldn't form words yet, too surprised by how quick the blonde was to change, but thankfully, she didn't need her to introduce herself.

"Hi! I'm Yang! Nice to meet you Misstress…?"

"Oh, just call me Kali dear," her mother responded, slightly taken aback by the given nickname.

Finally finding her voice, Blake stated unsurely, "Mom, this is a friend of mine, we were here for… a school assignment…"

"Really? Blake never once mentioned me about you before," her mother quickly stated, her eyebrows furrowing afterwards in what was hopefully only confusion. "Come to think of it, I've never seen you in any of Blake's classes."

Blake looked back at Yang, who was just as hopeless as she was in coming up for a good lie. So, the raven-haired girl ended up saying, "It's because she's a new student from… Vacuo." and was surprised of herself at how convincing she sounded.

When she looked at the woman who gave birth to her, she saw the sight of her silently chuckling.

Before she could ask, her mother was already in the 'old memories' zone. "Ah, good old Vacuo. I remember when I first got to that city. I was still only friends with your father, oh, he was so much livelier back then, especially when he-"

"Mom!" Blake didn't know what her mother would possibly say, but she absolutely didn't want to risk it. Not even a little bit.

"Ohoho, sorry dear, I must've over said," Kali said, which Blake noted was the understatement of the year.

"That's alright, Ma'am," Yang chirped in, still wearing her bright smile.

Everything seemed to be in control. Her mother wasn't suspicious of the blonde demon, and she probably wouldn't be… if not for her next question.

"Say, would you like to stay for dinner?" Panic would be the right word to describe Blake when she heard that question. And Yang seemed to notice as well, answering as her smile deflated, "I'd love to, but… I have other things to do."

On instinct, Blake added, "Her parents must be worried…"

The girl's heart faltered a little when she heard Yang muttered quietly, "Yeah… parents…"

But fortunately, her mother seemed to be completely oblivious. "Oh, well that's too bad, I made sushi, they're Blake's favourites-"

"Mom!" She shouted out of embarrassment.

Grabbing the blonde's wrist, she said, "C'mon Yang, let's take you outside."

"Bye Misstress Kali!" Yang shouted as she allowed herself to be dragged by the smaller woman.

When they reached outside, Blake was glad that the rain had stopped.

She looked back on the blonde only to find her looking down, pondering about something. Afterwards, she said, "So… friends. Is that what we are now?"

Blake bit her lip, still unsure what she should see the blonde as. They just met at this day. And not only was Yang still considered a person she couldn't trust, but she was still confused about this whole ordeal as well.

Demons… slaves… it all made her feel lost and confused.

But when she looked back on the lilac eyes, she didn't found a single trace of sadness in them. Sadness because Blake still couldn't trust her nor couldn't see her as a friend.

Instead, what she found was the usual and warm understanding smile.

"Thank you… Blake. I'll see you soon," Yang said, pulling her hand to her lips so she could kiss it, earning a blush from the smaller girl.

 _'And they say chivalry is dead,'_ Blake told herself.

A few seconds later, Yang turned back to the small and familiar yellow bird, and fly into the distance.

"Bye," was Blake's final word before closing the door.

The rest of her evening went by automatically. Even when her mother cooked one of her favourite meal for her, she didn't feel so bright.

Heck, she didn't even remember how the sushi tasted in her mouth, nor the topic she and her mother discussed on the dinner table.

She just nodded at every few sentences her mother said. And when she asked her how her day was, she just replied with a simple, "Fine," or "Normal."

Little did the woman know, her day today was anything but those two words.

She was forced to reevaluate what was real and what was not simply because of a conversation she had with a girl… a demon.

It was a literal life-changing moment. And she didn't know whether or not she would be seeing the girl again. But she had a feeling that she might.

And so, once dinner was over, she quickly went to her room and start researching more and more about what Yang said she was.

But the result were vastly different than what she had expected.

According to the many articles she had read, demons were supposed to be evil creatures.

 _'But Yang wasn't evil,'_ she thought, remembering the girl's smile.

Their eyes were supposed to bring you to the world filled with madness and misery.

 _'But her eyes made me feel warm,'_ she denied, imagining those pools of lilac.

They only wanted one thing from you, and one thing only. And that was to harm you.

"But all she said she wanted to do was to protect me…" she ended up saying out loud.

She ended up closing the article, and feeling even more confused than before.

The article said nothing about demons being able to transform into animals. Nor did it say anything about demons being slaves.

"Who are you?" She asked to nobody in particular.

And, the last thought she had before she went into her bed and let sleep consumed her was, _ _'What do you want from me?'__

* * *

When she woke up the next day, the first thing she focused her attention towards was her bedroom window. She quickly opened the curtains, and looked outside, hoping to find a familiar gold feather or small red eyes.

But there wasn't any of those things. She only found a few trees, cars passing around, clouds, anything but what she was looking for.

Then, she remembered a certain tree she saw yesterday, the tree where she found the odd girl in the first place, and she took a short bath and barely touched her breakfast before going outside.

It was rare for her to go outside, especially on a Saturday morning. She saw the way her mother looked at her curiously, but shrugged it off.

That wasn't what was important.

Since yesterday, she didn't even know what was important anymore.

Except… _answers._

Answers. That was what she needed. Answers from the girl who turned her world upside down.

She needed to find the girl who did this to her. She needed to find the woman who could change her beliefs and view upon the world in one afternoon.

So, glad was Blake when she saw the same girl standing right in front of the tree, wearing the same clothes as yesterday.

Only then did the demon noticed Blake's presence. And when she did, the first thing she said was, "Thank gosh you're not dead."

* * *

 **Beta : Pontius Pilot**

 **Author's Note : Okay, first of all, I'm sorry for deleting and reposting the chapter. I need to make a few changes. So, um, thoughts? I won't have a consistent uploading schedule nor consistent chapter length, just in case you're wondering. Just know that I'll, hopefully, be able to upload in every 1-2 weeks. I hope you guys like it!**


	3. A Saturday Morning

"Thank gosh you're not dead, otherwise I'm terrible at keeping promises."

That sentence certainly did raise Blake's eyebrow, but it made her chuckle in amusement rather than worry.

The gentle morning breeze accompanied the silence they've endured, with Blake staring at the blonde, the demon, that was actually real.

Her eyes looked away as she said, "Hi, Yang," not wanting to sound overly friendly nor too formal.

"So, what brings you here?" Yang asked, her head tilting a little to her left, which the human noted was very cute when she finally looked back at her.

But then she finally realised something. Something particularly important to her right at that moment.

She had no idea what to say.

 _'_ _Crap,'_ she didn't thought this through. She just knew that she wanted, no, needed to see the blonde. She needed to get her answers.

Blake put her hand on her pocket to cover up her lie. "I was just, doing my usual morning walks… and, I saw you."

And she wasn't technically lying either. She used to love doing her morning walks. But she stopped ere since she moved here.

Blake wanted to remember why, but she was too distracted by the response she got from blonde. A response that couldn't make her heart beat faster or her cheeks burning, but did so anyway.

A smile.

Not just any smile.

The smile that made her wonder who the blonde actually was. The smile that wonder why the blonde wanted to talk to her. The smile that made her wonder whether the blonde knew that she was lying or if she was just happy to see her.

For a reason she didn't know what, Blake believed it was the latter.

Pulling a strand of her yellow hair, Yang said, "You know, this is the first time we met," her shoulders moved upwards just a tiny bit, but Blake didn't miss it, "If you even remember," she proceeded to walk onto the tree, and gently ran her fingers through the crispy surface, "When I, um," she lowered her head, her lips morphing into a small smile, "When I accidentally hit this tree and you saved me from potentially being dead," she ended her sentence with a light, yet honest chuckle.

 _'_ _I know, that's why I came,'_ Blake wanted to say, but instead opting to smile, remembering the tiny yellow bird that she saved from the rain on a Friday afternoon, thinking about what book she was going to read and knowing that she will enjoy reading that book… oh, how wrong she was.

She didn't know how long time must've passed, it could be seconds, or even minutes. She only knew that however long time did pass, it was more than long enough for them to not say anything to each other.

"Do you want to, maybe, get some coffee?" The raven-haired girl asked, noting that it was the least suspicious invitation anyone could offer.

"Coffee?" Yang questioned, "Is that some type of potion?"

Blake simply chuckled, putting her hand on her head, "Oh yeah, that's right, I forgot." She looked at the blonde with her smile still on her face, "It's a drink."

The blonde shrugged, "I don't know what that is, but okay!" the entire sentence a mix of confidence and confusion.

Blake shook her head, _'_ _This girl…'_ she thought, slightly disturbed by how easily Yang accepted her offer even when they've just met yesterday.

The older pointed with her thumb to her left, "I know a place nearby that serves amazing coffee," her smile turned into a grin, "Let's go."

"Wait!" The blonde shouted out of the blue, causing the smaller girl to flinch and look at back at her.

To say Yang was scared would be an understatement. Her hands clenched into a fist, her brows were furrowing, and she was even biting her lips. "I've seen those creatures before, but… that one's been standing there ever since it got here," the demon said, her voice low and raspy as her lilac eyes looked at something behind Blake, "I think it's following me."

"What?!" Blake half-asked half-shouted, turning around to see…

A car.

A small grey car that was parked near both of them.

Blake only now realised that Yang didn't know a lot of things about this world, and it was probably a miracle that she was able to survive out here… on her own.

"That's just a car, Yang," she explained calmly with a smile, hoping it would make the blonde calm down. Her smile quickly changed into a grin when she saw Yang's expression shifted from fear into confusion.

The younger girl did seem less scared than before, but she still asked, "Does it bite?" making sure that neither of them were in mortal peril.

Once again, Blake smiled at her question, "No, it's a machine," she explained, feeling as if she was a teacher.

The blonde instantly perked up, "Oh! Like a phone?"

"Yes, Yang, like a phone," she confirmed, inwardly chuckling at how the demon associated machines with phones.

"What does it do?" She asked eagerly, her feet slightly bouncing up and down.

"It, um" Blake stopped for a moment, not expecting the blonde to ask so many questions, "it lets you travel to places, like um…" she pondered before continuing, "a horse." She didn't actually know if demons used horses to travel to places. For all she knew, demons could be using some kind of monster-horse-alien-thing that could travel in the speed of light.

The blonde frowned, "What's wrong with changing into an animal and," her eyes widened, "oh wait," she rubbed the back of her head awkwardly, "I forgot, you humans can't change into animals."

"No, we can't," Blake guaranteed with a smile, _'Gosh, she is so adorable,'_ was her thought as she said those words. "C'mon, let's go," she merely said as she started walking.

They walked rather slowly together, and Blake took the time to enjoy her surroundings. The un-polluted morning air, the sounds of the bird chirping, the view of the rising sun, everything.

"Why did I stop doing this?" Blake asked, more to herself than to Yang, but the girl's attention never left her.

"Maybe it's because you're too busy?" Yang suggested, putting her two hands behind her back, not unlike a child.

Blake thought about the girl's words, putting her hand on her chin as she contemplated. _'Well, there have been a lot more assignments lately… and most of them were really time-consuming, but…'_ she put her hand on her hip as her brows furrowed, _'none of them hadn't really bothered me that much-'_

"BARK!"

At that moment, the colour from Blake's face was drained, and she stopped walking.

"Blake?" Yang asked, worried about her. But she couldn't listen to what Yang was saying to her, she was too busy realising why she stopped doing her weekend hobby.

It wasn't because she was busy because of school… it was because the girl's neighbourhood was famous for the amount of dog-owners. And people loved to walk their dogs every morning, especially on a weekend morning.

And dog was… dog was Blake's nemesis. They were her mortal enemies. She hated, loathed, despised, feared… dogs. Anyone who didn't know that, they might as well didn't know Blake herself.

She disliked every kind of dog, including the one she saw from across the road, _'thank gosh,'_ she thought, noting the distance between her and Yang and the small white poodle and it's owner, wearing a simple blue t-shirt and dark grey jeans, walking her dog, blissfully unaware of Blake's terror.

But, from a far away distance, she heard another bark, one that's coming from in front of her, in the same direction as the place they were heading.

"Yang…" she said, her voice already trembling.

Thankfully, the blonde noticed that something was wrong immediately, "What is it?"

"Yang, I'm… I'm scared of dogs," she said, slowly back-pedalling, instantly concerning her even more.

"Dogs?" Yang questioned, "You mean these creatures?" she pointed towards the poodle.

"Yes, let's just, let's just go," Blake suggested, tugging the blonde's shirt, walking in the opposite direction.

But Yang still didn't obey her, unfortunately, and she wasn't lying when she said that her strength was beyond the average human. "But… it doesn't look dangerous…" she said, observing the dog and it's owner.

Blake continued to pull the demon's shirt with all her might, but she still didn't even notice the girl's attempt, her lilac eyes were looking at the creature with laser focus. "Is it a strategy?" she eventually questioned, "pretending to look cute and harmless?"

"No, it's not, it's just," Blake shut her eyes for a brief moment before she said, "I'm scared of it, okay?" and let go of her shirt, crossing her arms in embarrassment.

"Scared?" Yang repeated, her eyebrows lowering in thoughtfulness, "Scared, like, how some humans, that I heard of, are scared of another creature called 'spiders'?"

The human's arms released themselves, clenching into a fist, "Yes!" she admitted, "Like how we're scared of spiders, snakes, and even _ants_!" she looked away, "look, let's just find another place, or you could even stay at my house for the day, I could make us tea!"

She expected the blonde to either agree with her or disagree. But that wasn't what the blonde did.

Instead, she put her hand on the smaller girl's shoulders, forcing her to look into those entrancing lilac eyes.

"Do you trust me?" She asked for the second time.

In return, Blake's brows furrowed, "Why do you keep asking th- Whoa!" she was cut off by the sudden interruption of her being carried bridal-style by Yang. "Yang?!" she demanded, both embarrassed and worried at the same time.

"Just tell me where we need to go, okay?" was Yang's only words as she smiled, seemingly not showing any signs of struggling as she carried an almost full-grown woman older than her.

Too busy admiring and fearing the blonde's strength, Blake simply nodded, unable to find her voice.

After what felt like hours of staring at Yang, Blake's ears finally picked up the sound of the terrifying, filthy creatures currently below her, barking for no apparent reason.

And it sounded _very_ close to her.

When Blake looked towards the sound of the voice, she found that a bulldog was right besides her, being walked by a man who didn't seem to notice nor care that a teenage girl was carrying another, smaller teenage girl.

The small girl immediately held onto the blonde tighter and shut her eyes, fearing that the dog will came to her and attack her.

"Wow, Blake, look! They all come in different shapes and sizes!" She heard the blonde say, but still refused to open her eyes.

"Please just keep moving," she fearfully said, still holding onto the blonde as tight as she could.

"Okay!" Yang said, her pace becoming faster.

The rest of that time, Blake still kept her eyes closed, it wasn't until she didn't hear anymore barking did she finally open her eyes only to see those lilac eyes looking forward.

"Um, Yang?" She asked, looking down.

"Oh, you're finally awake," Yang stated. Blake wanted to deny it, but she wasn't sure herself if she did fall asleep. "What is it?" she heard the blonde asked with her attentive, yet gentle voice.

"You can," she stopped for a brief moment, feeling her cheeks turning red, "you can put me down," she mumbled.

The blonde didn't say anything, and instead she put her down, the smaller girl couldn't keep her balance at first, so Yang put an arm around her waist and the other on her shoulder. "There," the younger girl remarked. "Sorry for carrying you like that, it was the only thing I got at that moment," the blonde apologised.

The older girl shook her head, "No, i-it's okay," and wore what was hopefully a genuine smile. She didn't mean to stutter, she just didn't expect the blonde's actions, nor strength,… nor anything at all really.

She just met this demon yesterday, learned that apparently, demons did exist, and she currently was walking with a demon at this moment.

It all still felt like a dream to the girl, as if everything that happened yesterday, and everything that was happening now, was anything but reality.

She and the blonde stared in that uncomfortable position for several seconds, Blake would've gotten more lost in her thought, if Yang didn't release her hold. "Again, sorry," Yang said, rubbing her neck while looking away.

Blake wanted to comfort the young girl, but the only thing she did was saying, "It's alright." But, that seemed to be enough for the lilac-eyed girl, as a bright smile formed on her lips, the bright smile Blake was starting to grow accustomed to.

"Oh yeah, and Blake, lions are _so_ overrated," Yang offhandedly commented.

"What?" Blake couldn't help but asked.

"I thought they'd be bigger, but turns out it wasn't," the blonde explained, disappointedly. "Plus, none of them roared very loudly," she said, frowning in the most adorable way possible. "I think Uncle Qrow was just messing with me," she sighed.

"No, Yang, what are you even talking about? Where did you see a lion?" Blake asked, worried that the blonde might've gone to the forest.

"Just a few minutes ago, when I carried you," Yang stated, shrugging, "They're not scary at all."

 _'_ _Oh…'_ Blake thought, starting to grasp the situation.

"Yang, those aren't lions. They're dogs," Blake explained, dropping Yang's jaws.

"What?!" Yang asked, her eyes wide, "What about the cool black one?" she asked.

"Nope, that's a dog."

"What about the chubby brown one?"

"That's a dog too."

"Man! I really thought that one's a lion," she complained, rubbing her temples, "wait," her eyes narrowed as she stared at her company, "How do _you_ know which is which? Your eyes weren't even open!" she accused.

Blake smirked, "Because I lived here."

The blonde grunted afterwards, putting her hand to her chest while frowning. Then, she looked to her left and pointed towards that direction, asking, "So, is that a dog too?"

Blake cringed when she saw what the poor girl was pointing at. On the tree, stood a tiny squirrel eating it's favourite food known to man, nuts. "Actually…" she lowered her head, feeling guilty for simply telling the truth, "That's not a dog…"

"What the- Blake!" she whined, "Why is your world so confusing!"

"Beats me," was the human's only reply, smirking at how cute the blonde was at that moment, while the other girl continued to pout in a really 'Ruby' way. But suddenly, a question popped onto Blake's head. "Hey, if you don't know what these animals are, then, how are you able to change into a bird?"

Yang's pace slowed down, she put her hand on her chin, rubbing it as she tried to find the right words. "Well… I guess it's because some animals do exist in my world too, but," she looked up on the bright blue sky, her eyes squinting in wonder, "there are so many varieties here… they all come in different shapes and species… it's beautiful, in a way."

She looked at Blake, and found her staring back with her jaw dropped. The demon grinned, showing her white teeth, "And, it's also one of the many abilities that a demon has."

With that sentence, Blake shut her lips together, immediately looking to anywhere else other than the blonde. She was curious of the many 'abilities' that Yang, supposedly, has, but was forced to stop her thoughts when they reached their destination.

 _'_ _Finally,'_ was her only thought, a smile coming into her lips.

In front of her was a small building with two large windows on each side that has a big sign above it named 'The Mug'. Small wooden tables were placed right in front of the building, as well as chairs.

"The mug?" Yang asked, looking at the older girl after reading the sign.

Blake smiled as she looked at the building in front of her. "Yeah, most people haven't even heard of this place." She took a step forward, "It's usually pretty empty in there," her amber eyes met pools of lilac, "Which is why it's great."

But before she could even reach out for the door-knob, Yang was already right next to her, opening her door for her. "Um… thank you," she could only manage to say, not too used to this kind of treatment.

"No problem Blake!" Yang easily replied.

The human walked inside, the sound of her shoes touching the clean floor echoing through the small area. Another footsteps accompanied her, a louder and heavier footsteps. She stopped only to view the nice little coffee shop.

The place could still be considered as empty, two elderly people were present, sitting near the window, chatting and laughing, and near them was a man wearing a suit, typing on his laptop, presumably working.

But there were still more people than Blake would've thought. She cautiously took another step, thinking, _'It'll have to do.'_

She chose to take a seat in the right corner, the furthest away from both the entrance, and everybody that was present. _'Better be safe than sorry,'_ she convinced herself.

But, before she could pull the chair, Yang already did that for her, and she did so with her other arm tied behind her back, _'Like a true gentleman…'_ Blake thought, despite knowing that Yang was a girl. A _demon_ girl.

Despite the warm and welcoming atmosphere of this small shop, Yang didn't seem at ease. She glanced around and flinch at every sound, reminding the other girl of a deer. "Calm down," Blake assured her, "This place is safe."

In return, Yang gulped before answering with a weary smile, "You're right," she looked at her side, "I'm just… overreacting." Her eyes looked to the left as she said, "Everything's fine."

Blake knew she was lying, but decided not to push the issue further. Thankfully, fate had changed the topic for them, through a waitress that came in.

"May I have your order?" she curtly asked, her notepad and pen already in her hands, preparing to write down their customer's wishes.

Blake didn't even need to think before answering, "A cappuccino please." She actually really wanted tea at that moment, but she knew they didn't serve that drink in this shop, otherwise she would've order a tea instead.

Both the waitress's blue eyes and Blake's yellow ones trailed onto Yang. The blonde seemed anxious, fidgeting before she finally answered, "I'll just have whatever she's having."

The waitress kept staring at the blonde for a short few seconds, but it didn't go unnoticed by Blake, "All right then," the working woman concluded at last, writing down their orders, "That's two cappuccinos, thank you very much."

"You're welcome," the blonde answered politely, not realising that it was part of her job to thank them.

When she finally disappeared, the blonde played around with a strand of her hair, laughing embarrassedly before she mumbled, "So, um," she gritted her teeth awkwardly, "What's this 'cacicuno' thing?"

Blake pursed her lips, but nothing came out of her mouth. She realised that explaining what a cappuccino even was would be too unnecessarily time-consuming. After all, the best way to learn was through experience. "You'll see," she said cryptically, feeling satisfied by looking at how Yang became even more anxious.

In the waiting, Blake tapped her fingers on the wooden surface, before realising how similar she acted to a certain prissy heiress. She stopped, and instead trailed her hand through her soft raven hair. Not knowing what they should actually talk about.

"So… you said that demons have certain abilities that humans don't have," Blake started, making sure her voice wasn't loud enough for someone else to hear, "What are those abilities?"

Yang put her hand on her chin, a sign which meant she was thinking. Afterwards, she spoke at a normal volume, clearly not worried about potential stranger eavesdropping on their conversation and turning her into a lab rat. "Well, it's different for each one of us. Some have greater abilities than others."

Her eyes were focused on the white ceiling above, the lamp bringing a yellow that blended in wonderfully onto her lilac eyes and matched perfectly with her yellow hair. "I think the most common would be turning into animals."

The blonde looked down to find Blake nodding in understanding, clearly because the smaller girl was a quick learner. "Then, I guess there's mind-altering, magic-"

"Hold on, what?"

Yang cocked her head to the side, "What?" she asked in confusion as well, although for a different reason.

"You said you could alter someone's mind?" Blake asked, "as in, controlling their thoughts and emotions?" already suspicious that the blonde did something to her mind, similar to hypnotism.

Yang shook her head, "Oh no, I can only do it in a small amount," she shrugged as she said off-handedly, "I've actually been doing it since I got here."

When the only response she got was Blake frowning at her, Yang elaborated, "I promise I didn't do anything bad to yo-"

"So you _did_ do something to me!" Blake stated angrily, "What did you do to me?" she demanded, standing up and pointing her index finger at the demon, not even worrying about what the other customers and workers might be thinking. "Tell me!"

"Whoa, Blake, take it easy," Yang said, surprising Blake at how non-threatening she sounded, "I only used a small amount of my powers to calm you down! That was it!"

Amber eyes narrowed, "Really?" after all, it wasn't like Yang at all to be doing something horrible to her, like kidnap her or even kill her. If the demon wanted to, she would've already done it since yesterday.

"Yes!" Yang said in desperation, her lilac eyes showed no sign of secrecy or hostility, only pureness and innocence was displayed on those big eyes, "When we first met, you were really freaked out, and, I had to calm you down!"

So, after they had an unofficial staring contest, Blake finally said, "Alright… I believe you."

Yang visibly relaxed, putting her hand to her chest and replied, "Thank you."

 _'_ _For now,'_ the older girl claimed in her head.

Afterwards, Blake looked down, thinking, and eventually, she asked asked, "So, like at that park earlier, how nobody noticed you carrying me, that was because you used your magic?"

"Uhuh," Yang said, closing her eyes and nodding. "I'm using it right now too, so nobody can listen to what we're saying," she smirked, "You don't have to whisper, they're not gonna find out." She put both of her hands behind her head, leaning backwards and relaxing, "To them, we're just having a normal human conversation."

Blake's cheeks turned red, "Oh," was the only thing she said, looking around and only now noticing that how nobody was looking at them, even after she caused a bit of a ruckus.

"So, what else?" Blake asked.

"Well, that's basically it. I mean, we are stronger and faster than a regular human, but I don't think that counts as a special ability," Yang said as she shrugged, clearly not making a big deal out of her own powers, even though Yang was terrifyingly powerful, in Blake's simple opinion, after having witnessed it for herself.

"Hm…" Blake merely nodded, her eyes continued to stare at her with wonders and curiosity. She remembered that in many of the articles that she read, there was another mythical creature that was always associated with demons. "So, if your kind exist, does that mean angelsexist too?"

Based on her research, angels were supposed to be the exact opposite of demons. They've been living in hatred of each other for thousands of years. She predicted that Yang would be disgusted by the mere mention of that name, and explained how that kind had killed her friends and family.

Heck, she wouldn't be surprised if Yang punched the wall near them, or the table, or even if she wrecked the whole shop for that matter.

Instead, what the human got was, "What's an angel?"

Out of the many answers Blake hoped she was going to get, she certainly didn't think that was the answer she got, not even close. So, it wasn't a surprise when she couldn't find her words. "It's uh… well, it's one of the mythical creatures us humans made up. I thought since demons exist, angels would too."

"Really?" Now it was the younger girl's time to ask questions, "Well, tell me more about them!" she exclaimed happily, not unlike a child.

Blake cleared her throat, "I did a bit of a research last night about… your kind," she stated, trying to be as polite as she could, "And I realise that the way we thought demons would be is very different from how they really are," she looked at the blonde with a shy smile, "Well, it's very different from how you acted."

Yang leaned closer, both of her arms grabbing the edge of the table as she asked eagerly, "Like how?" no sign of offence or anger was shown, only bright enthusiasm.

The smaller girl realised that she was similar to a grown woman telling a fantasy story to a child. "Angels and demons can't exist without each other. At least, that's what the articles said. They're polar opposites, and… angels are the… _good_ ones."

Lilac eyes stared at her, aching her to continue, apparently not understanding what the older girl was implying. "And demons are… the bad ones," she gulped, "'Pure evil' type of bad."

She wanted to elaborate a little more, but felt that it was unnecessary seeing the way the girl's eyes widened. "What?! We're not bad!" she claimed, leaning backwards and crossing her arms, "We're good people…" her lips morphed into a pout, "Hopefully…"

Seeing Yang's cute demeanour, Blake couldn't help but smile when she heard the younger girl asked as she loosened her grip, "Who came up with this idea?"

Blake shrugged, "Certainly not me." Then, her eyes went down automatically as she started thinking, and eventually asked, needing confirmation from the demon, "So, angels aren't real?"

"Probably not," Yang answered, which Blake considered to be a 'no'.

Then, another thought came onto her head. A more sinister one. She asked, the feeling of at ease fading away from her. "And you're not evil, right?" when Yang just stared back at her, her face growing more grim, she asked, no, pleaded, "Right?"

Grinning was Yang as she leaned forwards, their distance closing despite Blake's attempt to get as far away from her as possible while still sitting on her chair. Sweats dripped down from her forehead, and she could faintly hear the breathing of the other girl.

The demon's mouth was right next to hers, her blonde mane touching Blake's lips as she struggled not to notice how soft it was, and how it's smell reminded her of vanilla.

She felt like she was a statue, unable to move, when in reality she didn't make any efforts at all.

In a soft, low voice, Yang whispered, "Am _I_ evil?" sending chills down the girl's spine.

In an unnervingly slow motion, Yang retrieved back to her seat, her chin held down and her lilac eyes staring at her predatory, reminding Blake of a lion looking at it's prey.

"A-are you…?" Blake's voice was trembling and in a higher pitch than normal, she just couldn't afford to speak normally, not when a demon was about to potentially kill her.

What was even wrong with her? Putting even a small amount a trust to a person she just met yesterday. And why didn't it occurred to her earlier that the blonde wanted to harm her in some ways.

A demon was standing right in front of her. A demon. That had a strength beyond a regular human. That had mind-altering powers.

Someone who could even be controlling her at this very moment.

To say Blake was terrified would be an understatement, but her thought process came to a halt when she saw what Yang did.

She laughed.

And it was far from the type of laugh her face was showing just a few seconds ago.

It was a care-free, tear-jerking, fun laugh.

Blake was lost, but picked up what her smile meant when she said in-between-laughs. "Oh Blake! You should've seen your face!"

The smaller girl tried her best not to look shocked, "S-shut up!" she tried to make it look believable by rolling her eyes, but it only served to make the other girl laugh even louder, which was the exact opposite of what she was trying to do.

After an embarrassingly long moment, Yang said, once her laugh died down, "But seriously tho," she wiped the barely visible tear from below her left eye, "Do I look like I want to hurt you?"

If Yang was anyone else, Blake would've said yes.

"I…" she wanted to lie, but felt like it was a useless act to cover the truth from the blonde, especially the truth that involved the blonde herself. "No…" she sighed.

Truth be told, Blake was a little worried of herself at how easily she trusted the blonde. She didn't even know why she trusted her, she just… did.

"Here's your orders," the same waitress from before said, appearing without Blake's notice, handing them their drinks. "That'll be 6 lien, please."

Blake reached out for her wallet on instinct, but a small event occurred that the older woman thought wasn't possible. Yang had her own money and paid for both of their drinks.

Then, another small, yet unnoticeable event happened.

The waitress was staring at Yang for a brief moment, eyeing her with hungry eyes for some reason. Blake frowned without even realising it, and only stopped once the waitress was out of her vision.

"Wait, how did you do that?" she asked, frowning at the first event.

"Well, it's not nice to let _you_ pay for my drink," Yang remarked, handing the other girl her mug.

"No, I mean," she looked down, "Thank you, but how are you able to… have money?" she asked, not knowing how else she was supposed to phrase those words.

"Oh! My uncle gave me, just in case," she explained simply.

When Yang looked back at her only to find her jaw dropped, she elaborated after a chuckle, "Hey, us demons use the money system too, you know," she gave Blake her drink, "We're not barbarians."

"Your uncle?" Blake asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, he's the only person who truly gets why I wanna go here, so, he helped me out, big time," she explained as she grabbed her drink. She smelled it and her face immediately lit up with wonder.

"Wow, this thing already smells great!" She commented, but it made Blake realised something.

Yang had never tasted coffee before.

 _'_ _I… should've given her a less… bitter drink,'_ Blake thought, cringing at the sight of the blonde slurping the brown liquid with a face that reminded her of herself on the first day of school… before it instantly changed into disgust, similar to Blake herself too when she came home from her first day of school.

But fortunately, Yang didn't spit it out, and swallowed it, even though she really didn't want to. Afterwards, she asked with shock written all over her face, "What the frick is this!?"

"That is the sweetest coffee you can get," Blake explained, amused to see how the blonde stuck out her tongue in disgust. It was such a cute sight to see.

"Ugh, you poor humans," she retorted, shaking her head in sympathy, "Do you actually _like_ this stuff?!"

Before Blake could answer, a familiar high-pitched voice from afar asked, "Blake?"

She didn't need to turn around to know who it was, but she did anyways, and met the sight of Ruby Rose wearing a dark red tank top and black jeans, looking at her with a recognition on her face.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Blake asked, genuinely curious. A lot of people didn't even know this place actually exist in Vale, so to see one of her closest friends to also go to this place was far beyond unexpected.

"This is my favourite place to get ice cream!" Blake rolled her eyes and shook her head with a smile, somehow she knew it had something to do with sugary treats. "Um… Blake? Who's that?" The brunette asked, pointing towards the blonde, who continued to look back and forth between the two dark-haired girls.

"Oh," Blake immediately stood up, "Ruby, this is Yang. Yang… Ruby," she said, gesturing towards the two girls, hoping her introduction would be pleasant enough.

"Nice to meet you, Ruby!" Yang was the first to extend her hand, being the friendly person she was.

Ruby immediately took it, stuttering slightly as she replied, "H-hi, nice to meet you too."

The young girl wasn't the best when it came to socialising, and, at first Blake was worried that Yang would be uncomfortable, but when the raven-haired girl saw that the blonde was smiling widely, she realised that she was worrying over nothing.

"So, are you two related?" Came the brunette's question, immediately making the two girls flinch.

"Oh, no, no," Blake denied, shaking her head.

"We're just friends," Yang mentioned in a calmer manner, waving her hand while she chuckled.

"Oh, then how did you two meet?"

"…What?" To say Blake was not prepared for that question would be an understatement. The brunette was way sharper than she looked.

"How did you two meet? I mean, it's obvious that we don't go to the same school, so…" she chuckled, putting her hands up in a questioning matter, "how?"

"We… um…" Blake said, taking a sip of her coffee to stall the time, looking at the blonde as a sign to ask for help.

She ended up saying, "We were childhood friends."

Ruby immediately chirped, "Oh! From when you lived in Menagerie?" connecting the dots for them without realising it.

"Yes! Exactly!" Blake agreed easily, feeling a weight that had been lifted from her shoulder.

The brunette sat with them and ordered a triple scoop ice cream, dropping both the waitress's jaw and Blake's. Only Yang wasn't surprised, and that was because she didn't even know what ice cream was nor what triple scoop meant.

Blake did know that the young brunette was always a fan of sweets, judging by the fact that she brought strawberries for lunch at school, but she had no idea she loved it this much.

"Ruby? Isn't that a bit unhealthy?" Blake asked, frowning after she took a small sip of her drink.

"Psh! Don't worry about it, it's not like I'm gonna _die_ from ice cream," Ruby mentioned, but she put her hand on her chin afterwards, wondering, "Although that would be a cool way to die."

"Wait till Weiss hears about this," Blake commented with a smirk.

The brunette's serious demeanour fell completely, "Please don't tell her!"

"Then you shouldn't eat three scoops of ice cream in the morning," Blake retorted, her worries never vanishing. She felt silly for telling the young girl what she once thought was basic knowledge.

"Ugh fine! But I already ordered it!" She commented. "Oh, I know! How about we share?"

Just the thought of the cold, pure sugar treat known as ice cream being eaten at such an early time already made the raven-haired girl feel sick. "Ugh, no thanks," she said.

"Yang, what about you?"

With that question, the blonde seemed a bit anxious, rubbing her neck and fidgeting, "Ah, I don't know," but when she looked at Ruby, she was already using her best weapon to get anyone to do what she said, a weapon that Yang herself owned.

But this girl. This girl had already mastered it.

"Please…" she sing-songed, "I want to eat some ice cream, and I already ordered three scoops. You don't want Weiss to kill me, do you?"

Even when the demon didn't know who the heck Weiss was, she still couldn't say no to those big shiny pools of silver.

"Fine," she said, smiling after she sighed.

"Yay! You just saved my life!" Ruby exclaimed, bouncing up and down in her seat.

"Ruby, please stop that," Blake told the brunette, holding the young girl's leg with her hand.

"And how exactly did I save your life?" Yang asked, a small smirk on her face as she played the game as well, instantly growing closer with the brunette.

"Oh! You haven't met Weiss yet! She's super awesome, but kinda strict sometimes," Ruby said before pouting.

The raven-haired girl flicked her nose, "That's because she cares for you, silly," earning a 'hey!' from the young girl.

"Y-yeah, I know that, obviously, but no cookies for lunch? Seriously?" She asked, pouting even more.

"So, she's uptight then?" Yang commented.

"Oh, definitely," Blake answered, not giving Ruby a chance to say otherwise.

"White and cold are basically what defines her. A lot of people even called her 'The Ice Queen'."

"But I believe she's just secretly a pretty vampire!" The words left the brunette's mouth before she even realised it, and she quickly covered her mouth afterwards, her cheeks as red as her name.

"Oh, I wonder what will happen if Weiss hears that you call her a vampire," Blake said, grinning almost sadistically. "A _pretty_ vampire."

"Please don't," Ruby said, her voice quivering with embarrassment.

"Why would you even think vampires are pretty?" Blake questioned, chuckling.

"W-well, they aren't!" Ruby defended, "Not that I know or anything…"

"Ruby Rose," Blake started, grinning even more now.

But, before she could continue, Yang finished her question for her. "Are you telling me that you _don't_ think Weiss is pretty?"

"I- I mean, urgh! You guys!" Ruby put her face on the table, hugging herself with embarrassment. She tried to gain her composure, and failed, as she said, "Okay! First of all, vampires don't exist!"

"They sure don't," Yang commented, smirking and looking at Blake who only rolled her eyes with a small smirk of her own.

"Secondly, Weiss is very pretty, thank you very much! Whether she's a vampire, or a witch, o-or anything!" She declared, only succeeding in making the two older girls laugh even louder.

"You really care about this Weiss girl, huh," Yang said, somehow making the brunette's blush turn even more red somehow.

"Yeah, well, she's awesome! How can I not like her?" Ruby asked.

Blake grabbed her shoulder, her grin replaced with a wise smile, and told, "If you like her so much, why don't you ask her out?"

"Well, it's because," Ruby tried to come up with a fake reason, but ended up sighing. "I didn't want to pressure her to be my girlfriend, or loose our friendship because of it… Plus, she seems to always be busy, and, she probably won't have time to be with me."

Right after she ended talking, her phone rang. Blake managed to catch a glimpse of the name of the caller, and grinned immediately.

"Snow princess?" The dark-haired girl couldn't help but ask, making the redhead blush once more.

"So, she doesn't have time for you?" Yang asked, grinning.

"S-shut up!" Ruby replied as she picked up the phone.

"Hiya Weiss! How are ya?" Ruby said, suddenly her previous embarrassment and anger gone from her.

"Wha? N-no, I'm not eating ice cream for breakfast…" she lied, her silver eyes looking at anywhere but the two smirking girls.

"Fine! But it's only _three_ scoops this time!" she whined, succeeding in making Blake drop her jaws, wondering how the heck she was able to melt the heiress's heart.

"Ugh, alright…" she ended up saying.

"Oh! Tuesday? Really?!" Ruby said, excited.

"Okay, can't wait to see you!" she was literally jumping with excitement.

"Bye!" she waved her hand, despite not being able to see her crush.

Once she turned to look towards Blake and Yang, who were looking at her with a wide smirk, she asked defensively despite her red cheeks, "What?"

"Nothing," Blake lied, her smirk never leaving her face.

"So… looks like I won't be able to eat my ice cream," Ruby commented, as the waitress came to her with her object. Then, she looked at Yang and offered, "Here."

"No, that's okay," Yang tried to argue, but the brunette shook her head.

"You don't have to finish it," the brunette said genuinely.

"…Alright thanks, Ruby," the blonde said, taking the cup of cold sweet.

Then, the brunette stood up, "Well, I should better be going, I promised Zwei I'm going to bring him some cat-shaped-chocolates."

"Aren't those dangerous for him?" Blake worriedly asked. She might not like dogs, but she did care for Zwei to a certain extent.

"Nah, those are just myths… I hope," she was silent for a moment, her eyebrows frowning before she clapped her hands together and said, "Oh well! It was nice meeting you Yang! Bye!"

"Bye!" The blonde said, waving enthiustically at her as she left.

Both of their smiles slowly faded as the quietness started to take control over them again.

"She seems nice," Yang said, her voice quiet.

It was only then did Blake realised that both of their drinks were finished. "Let's go," she said, standing up and leaving the restaurant, with Yang opening her door for her once more. "You don't have to keep doing that," Blake said, blushing.

"It's second nature by now," Yang replied, "Plus, I like doing it!"

Their walk was slow and relaxing, more so for Blake than for Yang, but that was only because there weren't any dogs roaming around the street like earlier this morning.

When she looked back at the lilac-eyed girl, she found that the demon hadn't even touched her ice cream yet. "Try it," she suggested, "It's good."

"Hmm…" the blonde muttered, "Okay."

Yang only ate a small bit of it, but Blake was worried that the demon had a heart attack, based on how shocked she looked. "Blake…" she said, "This… is…" her voice was quiet, worrying the raven-haired girl even more.

"Unworldly _perfect_!"

"What?" Blake didn't know what she should even be questioning, the fact that Yang wasn't dying, or the way she described a simple ice cream.

"I thought this was gonna be like that drink earlier, but man! This is _way_ better than that cacucino thing!" Yang exclaimed happily, taking another bite and moaning happily, "I should've left the kingdom years ago!"

"Kingdom?" Blake asked, not even bothering to correct the way Yang pronounced 'cappuccino'.

"Oh," the blonde took another bite before answering, "That's what we call our home," she explained proudly, which earned a nod in response.

Only after a few minutes, Yang already finished her cup of ice cream, "Never thought you'd have a sweet-tooth," Blake smirked.

"Sweet-tooth?" Yang questioned.

The dark-haired girl smiled as she explained, "It means you love eating ice creams and other sweet products like candies and-"

"Wait," Yang cut her off, her face lit up with excitement, "You mean… there are more foods that are also sweet like this?"

"Yes, but don't overdo it, or else you'll get cavities," Blake frowned.

"I don't know what that means, but yes ma'am!" the blonde said, grinning widely, relieving the older girl.

She didn't know how long time had passed, but, judging by how dry her throat was because she never really speaks so much, probably long. But that didn't bother her at all. In fact, she had only noticed it when she grabbed her phone to show the energetic blonde the difference between a dog and a lion.

"Wow, so, this is what a phone looks like now?" The demon asked as she grabbed Blake's phone, observing the rectangular object.

"You had one before?" Blake asked.

"Well, technically, it's not _my_ phone. Plus, that one's really old compare to this cute one," Yang explained, her brows furrowing.

"Here, you swipe it like this," Blake instructed, giving her an example as she scrolled down through the thousand pictures of dogs.

"Amazing," Yang commented.

"See, these are dogs," Blake explained. Then, she typed 'lion' through the search-engine that was google and pressed search, only for her phone to be filled with many pictures of the animal she wanted to see.

"Oh…" Yang hummed in understanding, "I think I get it," she explained, which led to Blake questioning something that had been bugging her for quite some time.

"You don't have any technology back on… your world?"

Yang smiled, "No, but that's only because we really don't feel the need to," she said, but before Blake could ask more questions, she asked, "So, how do you exactly know which one's a dog and which one's not?"

It took Blake a while, but eventually, she answered, "If it's gross, sticks out it's tongue, and follows you around everywhere, it's a dog."

"Wow, you're really scared of dogs, are you?" Yang asked while chuckling.

A blush formed on her cheeks, "I-I'm not scared! I just don't like them," she reasoned, even though she clearly had admitted that she was afraid of dogs earlier this morning.

Which was why the blonde raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Yeah!" Blake replied, hoping it sounded confident.

"Oh, okay then!" The blonde answered, grinning too widely.

Blake knew she shouldn't let her guard down, but she did, which was why she believed her when Yang pointed at a random direction and said, "Look! A dog! And this one's huge!"

"What!? Where?" Blake said, jumping and hiding behind the blonde.

Even after she heard the blonde laughing, Blake still looked around for safe measures before punching Yang lightly, "Jerk," she commented.

"Jokester," the blonde corrected.

"I'm surprised you even know what that is," Blake said while shaking her head.

"Well," the blonde said, rubbing the back of her neck, "My uncle did tell me a few things about this place."

"He did, didn't he," Blake said, and before they realised it, they were already in front of her house.

"Why don't you come in and stay for lunch? You said you never watch any movies, so, how about I give you the best first cinematic experience," Blake offered, already listing the few great movies that she and her parents owned and enjoyed.

"I'd love to, but," the blonde responded, looking as she mysteriously said, "I have other things to do."

Blake guessed, "Demon-related problems?"

The blonde, in return, flinched and looked at her left as she answered, "Yeah… demon stuff you don't wanna get involved with."

 _'_ _She's… lying,'_ Blake noted, but didn't think too much of it. After all, they only had met for two days, it wasn't as if they knew everything about each other, even when it felt like they did.

They stayed in silence before Yang tried to lighten up the mood, "But, I'll totally see you soon!"

"Tomorrow?" Blake asked.

"Probably," the blonde said before shrugging with a smile, but she loose her confidence when she looked at Blake who was frowning. "Look, there's no way I'm not gonna see you again, Blake, I still have a promise to protect you."

"But, I thought I told you not to," Blake interfered.

"No, you only stopped me from being your slave," Yang explained briefly, "I still have an oath to protect you."

"Yang, I'm," she sighed, "I'm sorry."

"What? Don't be, what are you even sorry about?" Yang asked, cupping the small girl's cheeks with her strong, yet tender hands.

"Because now you always have to protect me, even if you don't want to," Blake said, looking down dejectedly.

Yang chuckled. "You know what, even if you _did_ remove the protection part, I get the feeling that I'm still gonna want to protect you." Amber eyes locked with lilac.

"You know Yang… maybe I am scared of dogs…" She said with a smile and a tint of red on her cheeks. "Are you scared of anything?" she asked.

Yang looked to her left, her cheeks growing red as well. It made Blake wonder what she actually was afraid of, to the point where the demon was too embarrassed to tell her.

"Bye Blake," the blonde said as she took a few steps back. Afterwards, she turned back into the same adorable yellow bird and flew away.

 _'_ _Tomorrow…'_ was Blake's final thoughts before she closed the door, smiling more often than usual to the point where her mother even brought it up at the dinner table.

"So… did anything interesting happen today?" Kali asked, trying to be as subtle as possible… and failing at that.

"Yeah…" Blake answered offhandedly, "She is extraordinary," her mind was only thinking about the demon, refusing to think about anything else. She even missed the way Kali smirked at her.

But, she didn't miss the sound of the door opening, shocked not because her father did come home, but because of when he did.

She looked at the clock, making sure that it really was 6.12.

"Girls?" Came the low and strong voice in which Blake recognised as her father's.

She quickly stood up, abandoning her dinner and walk straight towards the man she loved most in a non romantic way.

Standing in front of the entrance door was the Chief of Vale, one of the most respected man even by the mayor of her city, otherwise known as Ghira Belladonna, her father. Despite his strong-build and black and white uniform, the man clearly looked tired. He always did for the past 5 years.

But that didn't stop her from hugging him, to which he returned without hesitation.

Afterwards, she looked into his darker amber orbs and said disinterestedly in a joking matter, "Hey Dad."

"Hello, Blake," he said before kissing her forehead, succeeding in making her smile.

"How was work?" Her mother asked, kissing him briefly after he and his daughter broke the contact.

"Like always," he replied, exhaustion visible in his tone of voice, "Only this time I was allowed to leave early."

Blake frowned as she suggested, "Why don't you rest, Dad? You look really tired," she really missed her father, it was rare for him to come home so early at all. But she didn't want to force him to spend time with her, even when he clearly needed rest.

"Nonsense," he replied, waving his hand, "I don't need rest, I need to know how you two have been." That sentence certainly did bring a smile to both her and her mother's face, even after his long hard day at work, he still made room for his family.

"So, Blake, you look happier than usual, did anything happen today?" His father asked before taking a bite of his food, smiling afterwards and complimented, "This food is great, Kali, did you put a special sauce in it?"

His wife responded gleefully, "I cooked it the same way as always."

Both of their eyes trailed onto Blake, who never said anything ever since they all sat in the dinner table, yet smiled as she sipped her glass of water.

Ghira whispered to his wife, "Is it a boy?" but Blake didn't missed it, instantly spitting out her drink.

"It is, isn't it?" he commented, seeing his daughter's reaction. "Please don't tell me it's that Sun boy again, I don't trust that he'll make a good husband."

"Oh my gosh, Dad, _no_!" Blake said after wiping her mouth, "And he's just a friend! Nothing more!" she answered honestly, frowning at her mother over the way she laughed.

"It is ashamed though," her mother remarked, "I really like that boy."

"Ugh! Mom! You too!?" Blake cried, her face as red as Ruby's cloak. "It's just a new friend of mine! We hung out today, that was it!" it took no longer than a second for Blake to realise what she just admitted, but oddly, instead of teasing her, her mother seemed to be in confusion.

"Hm… speaking of which," her mother started, her darker amber eyes looking at her dish in concentration, thinking. "She called me 'mistress'… why is that?"

Blake realised by that time that she hadn't actually explain her mother anything about Yang other than the fact that she was a new student.

Both of her parents had no idea who Yang was, who were her parents, where she lived, or any information really. It came to her senses that her parents should logically be interested if a girl started hanging out with their daughter, especially since she never mentioned them before.

"That's just her being polite," Blake responded, hoping it sounded believable enough.

"Who called you mistress?" Her father chimed in, interested as well.

"One of Blake's friends," her mother replied before taking another bite. "She's a new student from Vacuo," she said after swallowing her food.

"She just moved here," Blake confirmed.

"Moved here?" Her father repeated in a questioning matter, his eyes widening in surprise, "In the middle of the semester? How come?"

"I-I don't know, Dad," Blake honestly responded. "Maybe it's because of her parents?" she later suggested.

"Hm… maybe," her father said, still not entirely convinced. Blake supposed it was because he was so used to dealing with mystery in his job, he considered everything to be a mystery.

"Let's just eat, Dad," Blake ended, not wanting her parents to ask anymore questions about the blonde, especially when she didn't know anything about the demon's background.

Afterwards, they spent their meal in silence, only talking about Blake's studies and her mother's well-being. Her father even told them a few things that had happened at work, despite him not being allowed to do so.

And, in that short moment, it felt like all of their problems didn't even exist.

"Goodnight, Mom, Dad," Blake said, her feet already stepping on the staircase.

"Goodnight sweetie," her father replied with his comforting smile that Blake always loved seeing.

"Sweet dreams," her mother whispered that didn't go unnoticed by her daughter.

And for the first time in a very long time, Blake slept peacefully.

XXX

When the day that she anticipated did come, it came to no surprise for Blake that she woke up very early.

She felt a sense of de ja vu when her shower was quicker than usual and she only ate half of her breakfast food.

She woke up so early that even the dogs that she feared were sleeping in their respective front yards, safely guarded with wooden fences.

She came to the spot where they first met each other on that rainy day, hoping to see the same cheerful, nice, happy blonde and her radiating smile only to find… nothing.

 _'_ _What?'_ Blake asked herself, clearly not anticipating the absence of the demon.

 _'_ _She must be at the cafe,'_ Blake convinced herself, and walk towards that place only to find it empty.

 _'_ _Maybe she's waiting for me at home,'_ Blake guessed, still having hope.

But, just like before… Yang wasn't there.

So, Blake told herself that it was too early for the blonde to even wake up, and went back to bed only to find herself not being able to sleep.

So, when it was almost noon, she went outside again, finding, yet again, anything but the blonde demon that she wanted to see.

She went home and sighed, attempting to distract her mind from the demon, only to no avail. She tried reading her book, but was only able to finish 2 chapters instead of her usual 3, and went outside again, still hoping that the blonde did come to see her…

Tomorrow came… but Yang never did.

No matter how much Blake wanted her to come.

She didn't remember much of what happened that day. She only recalled her mother asking if she was okay, but other than that, not so much.

The only clear thing that she remembered was asking one thing, and one thing only.

 _'_ _Why didn't she come?'_

* * *

To say Blake was angry would be an understatement.

She clenched her fist and gritted her teeth, her amber eyes looking directly and harshly into the girl who broke a promise.

Blake was also surprised to see the blonde again, but she was more surprised to see her in her own class at that Monday morning, wearing the same yellow t-shirt as before.

"Yang!" She heard a happy Ruby called, along with whisperers and murmurs from other students.

And she could've sworn she heard Neptune say, "Wow, she's hot."

And that was when it finally hit Blake.

Yang was _very_ hot… inhumanly hot.

Now she finally knew why the waitress was eyeing the blonde funnily, almost jealously.

 _'_ _No!'_ Blake told herself, _'Now's not the time!'_ and she was right.

"Alright students, starting from now on, she will be your new classmate," Mr. Oobleck explained vastly, only stopping to look at the demon and said, "Miss, why don't you introduce yourself."

So, the blonde took a step forward and did what the teacher told her to do. "Hi everyone, I'm Yang Branwen, nice to meet you!" she said, smiling brightly.

The blonde glanced at Blake, and Blake could tell, even from the back of the class, that she was scared of meeting the raven-haired girl.

Her only thought to that was, _'Oh, you should be scared.'_

* * *

 **Beta : Pontius Pilot**

 **Author's Notes : Hey guys, so, wow, this chapter turns out longer than expected.**

 **A lot of you have told me that my story is similar to an anime called 'Maid Dragon', even though I haven't even watched that anime yet when I decided to make this story. And I can see the similarities, especially in the first few chapters. However, this story _will_ have a plot, I already planned from beginning till the middle, and I'm working on the final plot of this story.**

 **Also, what do you think about the interaction between the Belladonna's family? I hope it doesn't feel forced, since I put a lot of thought into it. I didn't want this story to only be about Blake and Yang, remember, Yang isn't the only person that matters in Blake's life.**

 **I also hope that this entire chapter doesn't feel too fast…**

 **Any kind of review is welcomed, as long as it makes sense. See you guys later!**


	4. The New and Hot Student

_'_ _Oh, you should be scared,'_ was Blake's sinister thought as her fist clenched and her teeth gritted with fury.

She had to resist the strong urge with all her might to stand up from her seat and yell at the blonde, choosing to take deep silent breaths in the attempt to calm herself, even when her mind was already plotting thousands of ways she could strangle her.

"Now, Miss Branwen, why don't you take a seat," the green-haired teacher suggested after sipping his cup of coffee, if whatever was in that drink even _was_ coffee.

The classroom was quieter than it usually was, and his voice was loud and clear as day, yet somehow Blake couldn't even comprehend what he was saying. Maybe it was because she was simply too busy trying to kill the demon with only her glare.

 _'_ _I've been worried sick for two days straight, wondering where the heck she is, and suddenly she showed up as cheerful as ever.'_ Blake couldn't precisely determine whether her growl could be heard by other students, but she wished the blonde could hear it, only so she could be scared of of the girl.

The brighter part of her mind suggested, _'maybe she just… forgot?'_ But, judging by the badly covered terror in the girl's lilac eyes whenever they accidentally made eye-contact, it was safe to say that Yang didn't forget.

Blake observed the blonde a little more cautiously, trying to find if there was any cuts or bruises, but, Yang seemed perfectly fine. In fact, Blake was beginning to think that the girl was more than fine.

Her furious amber eyes kept staring onto Yang, as if she could kill the blonde with nothing but her look. And, while it might not kill her, the blonde did notice the girl's intense glare. The reason for that being how she appeared to be doing her best to act happy.

Key word, 'act' happy.

Most people might not had noticed, but Blake certainly had noticed the way Yang kept looking to her left as she engaged in a friendly conversation with other students. She also noticed the way the blonde rubbed her neck with every few sentences that came out of her mouth. And she definitely did notice the way her head was lowered fearfully.

Blake only had known Yang for no longer than 4 days, but she could already tell the demon's possible thoughts and emotions based on her body language. It may be because Yang was too easy for her to read, but Blake liked to believe that there was more to it than that.

And right now Yang was anxious. That was a definite statement.

Blake secretly believed the younger girl was nervous because she didn't come and see Blake the day before… simply because Yang really should be scared.

The girl with the raven hair looked around the familiar class, gazing for no longer than a second at every one of her classmates, her friends, whose eyes were all looking at the unexpected new student, most of which were giving her a welcoming smile as she slowly walked with no direction in mind.

But, unexpectedly, a strangely heaven-like feeling consumed her chest when Yang's eyes met hers. It felt like minutes when those sincere orbs of lilac were glued onto her inflame pools of amber.

They were filled with so much guilt and dejection, as if they were directly speaking to Blake, telling her how sorry she was.

Like everything else, the moment didn't last forever, even when the feeling didn't disappear from the girl's chest until much later on. It was disrupted when a student called the blonde's name, forcing her to look away from Blake. Despite the boiling, burning rage she was feeling a moment ago, Blake was actually disappointed that their eyes couldn't stick to each other for one more second.

Blake sighed and looked down, opening her book and hoping it would make her appear as if she wasn't paying attention, relying only in her hearing to guess what was going on around her.

Most people, if not, everyone was showering the girl with attention. "Nice to meet you" and "I hope you'll like it here" were said many times in various ways.

Everyone was welcoming the blonde with open arms, but Blake wasn't paying attention to that fact. No, she was only paying attention to the blonde's response towards their words and actions.

From the different ways each student introduced themselves, like the contrasting ways of Pyrrha's warm welcome and Jaune's awkward one, the blonde responded each of the individual with so much thought poured into her words and actions. It made Blake nervous for some reason.

"Welcome to Beacon high school," the famous redhead known as Pyrrha said, her kind aura never fading for even a small amount. "I know you'll enjoy spending your time here, Yang."

The blonde smiled dazzlingly at her, "I'm sure I will," as she took her hand and shook them, slowly but confidently.

"H-hi," the shy blond known as Jaune suddenly said from his seat, hugging his chest.

If they thought he was going to say anything more, they were wrong. Yang, Pyrrha, Blake in secret, and a few others were watching him with little patient. He did nothing but contemplate whether he should say what was on his mind.

The boy did have a way to make everything stiff and uncomfortable, Blake was almost impressed. Almost.

"Hello," Yang greeted him, Blake could see that even she wasn't immune to his awkwardness, her hands were fidgeting, moving back and forth in a short distance, deciding whether or not she should extend her hand and greet him.

When he finally gathered the courage to speak, he chose to ask an odd question that made the atmosphere quieter and heavier than before.

"Are you a celebrity?"

At least, Blake thought it was an odd, maybe even a flat out dumb question. _'Why would a celebrity even go to school?'_ she deadpanned, knowing that if Yang was famous in any way at all, she would've been taking selfies or vlogging right now.

But, it appeared that she was mistaken to think the question was weird, judging by the whispering of other students who were approving his question.

It made her frown. _'What…?'_ she questioned under her breath.

"Uh… I'm just a student," Yang finally answered, chuckling lightly in an attempt to brighten the atmosphere, even though Blake was certain she didn't even know what a celebrity even was.

"Oh, sorry for asking, I thought you were some kind of actress, since, you came in the middle of the semester and all…" the blond murmured, sealing his mouth afterwards in the feeling of little self-worth.

Blake could hear that other students were agreeing with Jaune as well. "Why would she come in the middle of the semester?" they all were murmuring, which gave Blake a new sense of nervousness.

 _'_ _Crap,'_ she thought, _'they're already suspicious of her!'_

"It's fine," Yang answered with a half-hearted smile, shrugging before she finally started walking again in a slow pace, still figuring out where exactly she should sit down.

Blake, not wanting to pay attention to this whole baffling situation, decided to actually start reading her book, as opposed to staring blankly at the same page for quite some time.

But, as if fate itself was pulling a prank at her, Ruby decided to propose, "Why don't you sit next to Blake? You two are friends after all."

At first, Blake thought that the blonde could take care of herself, but now the introvert knew she had to say something.

Faint yet detectable murmurs and whispers of her classmates drew Blake's attention. Her eyes scanned at each and every student in her class, which all seemed to be shocked of the brunette's statement.

Her eyebrows knitted together in puzzlement, wondering why they were all so surprised when they hear that she and the demon were friends. Blake knew that she wasn't the type of girl who liked to socialise and meet new people, but surely everyone knew she had _some_ friends.

Yang rubbed her neck indecisively, "Um, I don't know, will you be okay with that, Blake?"

The smaller girl knew that if she declined the offer, not only would she be viewed as rude and heartless, but she would also have to explain to Ruby, and possibly a few other students as to why she didn't want to be anywhere near the blonde.

Ruby's argument was too innocent and convincing for Blake to say no to. _'Darn,'_ Blake thought at that fact, knowing that it was rare for her to ever say no to the young girl.

With an internal sigh, Blake responded curtly, "Sure Yang," making sure that it sounded casual and unsuspicious.

She turned the page of her book and pretend to be reading it again, not knowing what else she should do in this circumstances. Was she supposed to be angry? Sad? Or happy?

Her eyes may be looking at the words filled in this book, she could feel the blonde's lilac eyes, looking at her. Only when did she know that Yang wasn't staring at her anymore did she look at her, and by that meaning checking her out.

It was suddenly very clear to Blake why so many people were looking at her unusually. Why the waitress was looking at the blonde longer than she should've, and, recently, why Jaune asked if she was a celebrity.

Blake was wondering herself why she hadn't noticed it before.

Yang was drop-dead _gorgeous_.

Her yellow mane outshone everyone else's hair, making Jaune's own blond hair looked dull and greyish. The longer Blake looked at it, the more it appeared as if her hair was gold. In fact, she wouldn't be surprised if it really was gold.

Her skin already looked soft, even though Blake had never touched it before… well, she probably had, but, she didn't pay attention to the softness of it. It looked a bit tanned, but, it was still lighter than her own skin tone. Only faint small freckles were visible around her cheeks and nose, and that could only be spotted if people looked hard enough.

And her body… the small, yet noticeable muscles in her arms that made Blake wonder if the blonde had any experience in fighting. The body type that some teenagers strived to have, the blonde owned without realising how lucky she was.

Before, Blake never would've thought it was possible for a girl to look as stunning as a model only by wearing a simple yellow t-shirt and jeans… but now, it appeared that she was wrong.

"Ahem!" A loud purposeful cough interrupted her train of thoughts, lending her eyes to focus on the sound of the voice, which, unsurprisingly, belonged to the green-haired man. "Alright class, let's get started!" his sentence was like a command, instantly tearing away the students attention from the new student as they pulled out their notebook and utensils.

Blake did as well, but knew she wouldn't have to write many things, the teacher was well-known for speaking very quickly. Nobody was able to understand half of the things he was saying at his lecture, not even Ruby. The only one who could understand him was Weiss Schnee… the reason for that was simple. Because she was frikkin' Weiss Schnee.

"Hey, um, Blake?" a hesitant voice whispered, a voice that belonged to a certain demon that Blake wasn't very happy to see at the moment.

"What?" Blake half-shouted half-whispered, not wanting to draw any attention, but also not wanting Yang to feel as if they were on good terms yet.

"I… may have forgotten to bring any book… or any pen…" if Blake's hands weren't holding her book and pen, she would've slapped her forehead right at that moment.

Keeping the cold attitude that she was more than certain Yang deserved, Blake asked, turning around to meet the colour of lilac. "So?"

But, her confidence faltered in an instant when she saw those purple gems hidden in eyes. The fake confidence and happiness that the blonde displayed when talking to other students were gone, replaced by a truthful longing and desperation.

It shocked Blake to see her like that. So much so that she ended up sighing and saying, "Fine, here!" as she gave the blonde her own notebook and pen.

 _'_ _I've already read that chapter anyway,'_ she thought, not even daring to look at the blonde again.

"W-wait, what about…" Yang's sentence wasn't finished. She ended up looking away from the dark-haired girl and started writing. Blake thought she heard the blonde sigh, but she couldn't be sure.

The rest of her time was spent on trying her best to act like she was paying attention, while, in reality, she was unintentionally staring at the girl who was currently sitting next to her.

Lots of emotions were bubbling inside of her right now, each one struggling to gain control of her entire mood.

She was angry, angry at the blonde for not contacting her and making her worry. But she was also disappointed of her, wondering why she didn't want to meet her. But mostly, she was confused and angry at herself. Confused as to why she was even mad at the blonde. And angry for being glad that nothing was wrong with her.

With her conflicted emotions, Blake wasn't sure that she could pay attention to the class anymore. In fact, nobody could ever pay attention to what the teacher was saying, so, why should she even stay?

She stood up, and walked straight onto the green-haired man, who looked just as puzzled as the rest of the students in class. But she paid no mind to what they might be thinking as she said, "May I be excused?" Blake asked.

The green-haired man re-adjusted his glasses, knowing very well that Blake wasn't the type of student who would go and do inappropriate things naughty. so he simply nodded, meaning she was allowed to leave.

So, she walked away from class, trying her best, yet failing to ignore Ruby and Yang's worried expressions on their face. It made her feel even worse to know that they were both worried for her.

Blake made sure her steps were silent as she walked on the hallways. She didn't want to draw too much attention to herself, even when she could see that nobody wasn't even there, and if someone was there, she highly doubt they would care about her.

She opened the door to the bathroom, and warily scanned the area. She wanted some privacy, even though it was technically a public bathroom. She knocked on each stall that were closed, and opened the stalls fully just to make sure that she was the only one who was present in this room.

She sighed when she could confirm that she was alone, and looked at herself in the mirror.

Her slender fingers traced over her forehead, and onto her eyes, closing it as she massaged her head.

Then, her hand went onto her chest, clutching it, hoping it would somehow soothe her rapidly pounding heartbeat.

People say that it wasn't healthy to be alone with your own thoughts. Some even say it was dangerous. But, she always found that advice to be pretty stupid. Sometimes, people needed to be alone so they could sort out their emotions and figure out what they should do next. Especially regarding a situation which Blake couldn't explain to anyone without revealing the blonde's identity.

She said after a sigh, "It was only one day."

She closed her eyes, and let the emotional side of her replied, "She didn't even come to see me, she should've told me at least something."

The volume of her voice grew larger and larger with each sentence. "Why does she even need to tell you anything?" but it sounded almost as soft as a whisper as she murmured sadly, "It's not like she owes you anything."

She looked at the mirror, and find the reflection of a disappointed woman that said, "She… she does owe me something," her gaze lowered down onto the sink, somehow finding it to be interesting as she continued, "and she left me waiting… that's why I'm mad."

Her logical mind tried to reason, "Why do I even care so much? It's not like she means anything to me…"

She was surprised of herself when her mind, no, her heart said inwards towards her. _'It's because she does.'_ Such a statement that shouldn't make sense.

She splashed herself with the water, hoping the liquid would made her face less sad. She grabbed a few tissue and dried her face with it before she left the room.

They only knew each other for less than 72 hours, she shouldn't harbour any feelings towards the demon.

 _'_ _It's because she does.'_

There were lots of things Blake found to be emotionally painful about that statement. But the worst part about it was how much it made sense.

During that time, and until she was finally right in front of her classroom door, her mind was questioning why her last thought felt so… true. Which was why she was surprised to find the classroom to be filled with empty seats. Well, it would've been empty if the young Ruby Rose wasn't in it, trying to fit her big pencil case into her small bag.

"Ugh, c'mon!" she heard the brunette whine, which brought a smirk on her face, especially considering how cute the young girl was being at the moment.

"Where's Yang?" Blake questioned, which in response, got her a flinching Ruby.

"Blake! You scared me," she stated, which was far from the girl's actual intentions. She heard people comment that she was very quiet, almost like a ninja. But, in her own unpretentious opinion, Blake believed that everyone was just unaware of their surroundings enough to hear her footsteps.

"Um, Pyrrha decided to show her around the school. I want to come too, but, this stupid book just won't fit in!" she growled at the last part, relying only on brute strength to put the book in it's owner's place.

Blake walked towards the brunette said, "Here," as she tried completing her friend's task.

A few seconds was all it took for Blake to put the book in Ruby's bag, and it only worked because she was patient enough to open the zipper fully, as opposed to the young girl who managed to only open it half way.

"You can't always solve things with brute strength," Blake reminded her friend, wearing a solemn smile.

"Wow!" Ruby awed the older girl, her silver eyes almost literally shining with amazement. "Thanks Blake! You're a lifesaver!"

Blake smiled gently in return, touching the girl's shoulder. "Now, let's go find Yang," she said.

So, go and find Yang they did. And by that meaning getting out of class only to walk aimlessly in the hallways.

"So, um, where exactly are we going?" the brunette, with more than just a hint of unsureness, asked.

Blake responded, narrowing the results. "Well, I doubt they'd be at the library… and class is out of the question…"

"The gym?" Ruby suggested, her two hands being lifted up in her own wild suggestion.

Blake nodded in response, not feeling particularly chatty… well, not as chatty as she usually was.

Ruby asked out of the blue, "Hey, um, Blake?"

Blake's eyes looked onto the face of each and every student in her field of vision. Preferably, every blond student. But that didn't mean she wasn't paying attention to her young friend. "Yeah?"

"Is there something wrong?"

Blake was honestly unsure what she should be surprised of. The unusually mature tone that the brunette was using, or the fact that she noticed that something was wrong.

The older girl opened her mouth, but it didn't mean she had any answer to the brunette's innocent question.

"You never leave in the middle of class, especially not for _that_ long… what's wrong?" this time, her voice was more commanding, but it still had a soft edge to it, knowing, trusting, that her friend would never keep the truth from her forever.

"It's just… Yang…" Blake tried, she really tried to explain her feelings, but it just couldn't be done without having to tell the truth.

"What?" the brunette pleaded, succeeding with making her feel even more guilty.

"She… she promised to- umph!"

In other circumstances, she would've grunted in pain when someone bumped into her. But in this special one, she was glad that someone did, otherwise she'd have to come up with a believable lie in an excruciatingly short time.

"Oh, sorry!" a male voice said, a raspy, high-pitched and familiar voice which made Blake turn around only to see what she predicted she would see.

Sun Wukong. Wearing his usual white unbuttoned shirt.

"Hiya Blake! Sup Ruby!" he greeted them, his cheerful aura radiating through his bright blue eyes.

"Hi Sun!" the brunette replied, equally as cheerful. "Is it just me or is the hallway… louder than usual?"

"Oh, that's just because there's a hot blond roaming around," he stated matter-of-factly, but when he looked at the dark-haired girl in front of him, who was wearing an 'are you serious' expression, he frowned and said, "I'm serious! There's this new blond student at the gym, everyone's talking about her."

"That's it," Blake said without having to think much. "The gym, that's where Yang is."

She didn't miss the confused frown worn by her male friend, but because of the hectic and loud crowd, she decided it was best not to question it. "C'mon Ruby," was the last thing she said before abandoning her blond friend.

"So, about our previous topic…" Ruby mentioned, her gaze subconsciously lowering down and ended up looking towards the floor.

"Ruby, believe me, if I can talk to you about it, I will," Blake started, desperately.

She wanted to say more, but words failed to come out of her mouth when her eyes saw the sight of the woman she was looking for. The view in front of her was maddening, tearing her between feeling angry or anxious.

Yang was smiling almost happily, talking with other students.

Almost.

Even from a distance Blake could painfully still see that the blonde was faking her smile. Yet, it was believable enough for the other students to think she really was happy.

"I don't know, guys," she heard the blonde said after a short chuckle. "I don't think I'm very good at this 'basket' thingie."

"It's simple, Yang," Pyrrha explained. "All you have to do is throw the ball into the ring. I'm sure you'll do great."

"It's basketball!" Neptune stated, cheerfully. "Just because you haven't tried it out yet doesn't mean you won't be very good."

Blake didn't say a word, nor did she cough or make any other gesture that would attract attention to herself, but that didn't mean the blonde didn't notice her right away, and when she did, she immediately stood up, abandoning what seemed to be an enjoyable conversation.

"Blake."

She didn't know why, but hearing her name being spoken with that tone made her entire body feel a sense of rush, like she had consumed 3 pound of pure sugar. Nonetheless, she tried, and hoped that her act was enough to cover the fact that she was nervous.

Yang didn't say anything else. She didn't ask Blake what she was doing, or why she came. She merely stood there, waiting patiently.

"Can I talk to you for a second, alone," Blake asked in the most simplistic way possible, not wanting to make things more complicated than it seemed.

"Okay," the blonde replied, her face uncharacteristically stern.

It hurt Blake to see the blonde wearing that expression. But it hurt her even more to know that she was the one who caused Yang to act that way.

Blake led the blonde to the chemistry lab, knowing that it was one of the most unused rooms in all of Beacon, the library, unsurprisingly, being the most unused. But since it was far from the gym, the raven-haired girl decided that this room would be enough.

She closed the door, but didn't bother locking it, knowing that if someone decided to come in… well, they would have lewd guesses as to why two students would lock the door of an empty room at school.

"Look, Blake, I…" Yang wanted to start, but the glare she was given by the other girl made her shut her lips obediently.

"No one will know what we're going to talk about, right?" Blake asked, her composure balanced as her arms stayed crossed. But, after the blonde nodded confidently, her grip loosened and she almost yelled, "why didn't you tell me anything?!"

Yang's mouth was opened, but Blake didn't even consider giving her to explain herself, not after she finally spoke what was on her mind. Not until she tell the blonde what had been bothering her more than she cared to admit.

"Do you know how worried I was when you didn't show up?" her voice had a higher pitch than when she would normally speak, yet she didn't even bother trying to fix that. "Do you know how many times I had to go to where we first met just so I could meet you?" she was considering shoving the blonde now, but she might as well do that and it would have the same reaction to the blonde as what she was doing now.

"Blake," Yang forced that word to come out, her eyes filled with the definition of regret itself. "I'm sorry," she said only. Such a simple sentence. Yet, the way it was carried out made it appear as if it was anything but simple.

Blake let her mouth hung open for not a short while. She blinked before regaining her previous cold composure, saying, "sorry doesn't fix everything, Yang." And she _knew_ what she was talking about.

"Blake, listen…" Yang tried to draw her out of her uncontrollable anger, "I just, I don't know how else to say this, I, I really wanted to meet you but… I got carried away…"

"Why?" Blake pleaded, taking a step forward, subconsciously hoping it would reveal the answer more.

"I," Yang instantly bit her lip, and took a small yet noticeable step back, "you don't wanna know," she said, not wanting her lilac eyes to meet her friend's amber ones.

Suddenly, everything appeared quieter than before.

"All my life, people had lied to me countless times… they've been hiding me from the truth… I _hated_ that…" Blake could hear her voice very clearly as she said those words. It was raw. It was full of emotions. Not just any emotions. It was the emotions she had been bottling up for many, many years.

"I hated everything, I didn't believe in anything anymore… but then you showed up," she was smiling despite her glassy eyes. And she couldn't help but notice the way the blonde was staring at her.

They say eyes were the window of a person's soul. And Yang's lilac eyes very much confirmed that. Those orbs were the reason why the girl know whether she was lying or not. And at that moment, it was full of so much honesty in only one emotion… an emotion that Blake couldn't be certain of yet.

"I thought you could finally release me from the dark, bring me to the light, but… as it turns out, you're just like them…" the dark-haired girl chuckled, feeling a single tear slowly and gently drop from her cheeks. She was glad nobody but the blonde was able to see it.

"Looks like life isn't a fairytale after all," was the last thing she said to the blonde.

"Blake." She saw Yang's hand extending, reaching out… for her.

And then… she turned the other way, opened the door, and started walking.

"Blake!" uncertainty was what filled the way the word was spoken. Uncertainty and remorse. But she kept walking.

"Wait…"

It was only a whisper, but Yang's voice was crystal clear to Blake.

* * *

"So… wanna tell me what's going on between you two?" Ruby asked, her right hand holding her favourite fruit, which was strawberry, and her left hand supporting her chin as she leaned towards it.

As of this moment, the two socially inactive girls were sitting in their lunch tables at the cafeteria, preferring to be in the far corner of the large room simply to avoid talking to people. But now, Blake was glad that nobody would be able to hear what the girl was saying, especially not the gossipers.

"I don't wanna talk about it." It wasn't the most honest statement, but it was the only one she could give, and thankfully, wether Ruby noticed her dilemma or not, she didn't pry anymore information.

"Okay, then…" the brunette started, her forehead wrinkling as she pouted, "could you at least pretend that you're not angry? Cause you're already scary when you're not angry, and now…"

Ruby couldn't afford to finish her sentence. Blake guessed it was because the girl didn't want to offend her by simply stating the truth.

"… Sorry." The way she said it felt more broken than she had intended it, and she didn't know the logical explanation behind it.

"Is it… love-ish problems?" Ruby guessed, causing her to flinch and almost spill her drink.

"What!? No, Ruby! Why would you even say that?!" she said afterwards, de ja vu surrounding her six senses.

"It's just the way she looks at you," Ruby defended, her strawberry now dropped on the plate as she put her two hands up, gesturing her friend to calm down.

"What?" Blake asked, frowning. She knew that Ruby would sometimes say… odd things, but, this was beyond her usual 'oddness' choice of words.

"The way she looks at you…" the brunette repeated, almost cryptically. Blake frowned at her attempt to be the next headmaster of Beacon.

"What about it?" the raven-haired girl questioned.

"Wait, you don't notice?" Ruby asked, her eyes widening and her cool attitude disappearing in a flash.

"Notice what?" Blake sighed, taking lightly of the younger girl's concerns.

"How different she acts when she's around you!" Ruby threw her hands up, to her, apparently, this was such an obvious statement.

Starting to grow impatient, Blake said, "Ruby, speak english."

"She keeps looking at you, Blake. Not only that, but… she… she just acts differently whenever you're near…I think she has a crush on you," the brunette said, her tone was slower than usual, which Blake noted.

 _'_ _But, that couldn't be,'_ her mind stated, ignoring her flushed cheeks.

Blake looked at Ruby who smirked knowingly, as if Blake was head over heels for her.

Well, she would be lying if she said that she didn't have any attraction to the blonde whatsoever, but it wasn't just because of her looks, not like the reason why so many other students were interested in her.

No, it was because of who she was, not how she looked… even though that played some part in why Blake had a small crush on Yang.

But she knew that the reason why, apparently, the blonde looked at her without her notice. It wasn't because she had a silly crush on the girl. It was because she was sorry, and because she swore to protect her.

 _'_ _It couldn't possibly be because she has a crush on me,'_ Blake internally thought.

Her thought was cut off by the sound of Ruby sighing in pleasure, that was when Blake realised that while Ruby, and other students had finished their lunch, she had barely touched hers. "I don't know what's going on between you two, but," the brunette cleared her throat, "if you guys keep looking at each other in secret even though it's really obvious, then, why don't you try talking to each other?"

"It's not that simple Ruby," Blake knew it was a very cliche thing to say, but she had no other way to explain how she felt about the blonde. "She… I thought she was going to be different from everyone else in my life… I thought she would tell me everything, but she didn't…"

Blake looked at Ruby again, but this time, she really looked into the young girl's silver eyes, knowing that her amber eyes were more than enough to explain what she said. "You know how much I hate that."

Her gaze must've been so intense that made Ruby fake a cough and look away. After the heat died down, she merely suggested, "Maybe it's because she doesn't have a choice?"

And those lilac eyes came lurking into Blake's mind again, the eyes that were filled with so much longing and desperation. "Maybe…" maybe she was never given a choice from the very beginning.

"Well," Ruby said, her voice slowly regaining it's optimistic tone. "Whatever the reason is, it shouldn't keep the two of you apart," she smirked, "you two do make a cute couple."

She glared at the brunette before replying with a smirk, "says the girl who melts the Ice Queen's heart."

Ruby's confidence was wiped out in an instant, replaced by sheer embarrassment.

"Blake!" she whined in a very 'Ruby' way, "Stop talking about me and Weiss like that!"

"Weiss and I," Blake corrected with a grin.

"Whatever!" Ruby replied, her cheeks still red.

"Only if you stop talking about Yang and I like that," Blake said, her voice composed and stern, not leaving the other girl with much option but to comply.

"Deal!"

Only after dwelling in no longer than five seconds, the brunette asked, "so, um… aren't you gonna go talk to her?" as if they'd dwelled in the silence for hours.

Blake sighed warily, "yeah, just," her nervousness getting the better of her. "Give me time," she excused herself, "I need to figure out what I should say."

She knew that what she meant was, 'I'm scared', but the brunette simply nodded at her with a faithful smile, a faith that was directed at her.

"Ruby…" she couldn't help but ask, especially after she saw that smile. "Why do you trust me so much? Even when I didn't tell you anything?"

Ruby put her hand on her chin, "hm…" she said, looking up, trying to find the answer herself. "Well, I just… do," she eventually said.

"Why?" Blake asked again.

"I don't know why," the brunette shrugged, not making any of this a big deal. "Maybe it's because I know that you would never hurt me," she said with a smile. An uncharacteristically wise smile that was far beyond her age.

Blake didn't know whether Ruby actually knew what she meant, or if she just trusted her that much… the scene brought another sense de ja vu towards the raven-haired girl.

"Just speak from your heart," the brunette said, her voice lower and raspier than usual, instantly making Blake forget the fact that the woman in front of her was only 14 years old.

What brought Blake back to reality was the bell ringing. She blink a few times and looked down onto her unfinished food, then up again to see everyone starting to leave, presumably going into their respective classes.

She sighed, _'I'm not hungry anyway.'_

* * *

The only sound filling Blake's room was the flipping pages of the book. Once every few minutes the roaring sound of the vehicle echoed in her room, but otherwise, it was dead silent.

The rest of her school happened so quickly, with only a few things happening.

Other than her glancing at the blonde, or catching the blonde glancing at herself, the only other thing to note was how she quickly became well-known and liked by her classmates.

Before she leave the school she saw the blonde talking to Pyrrha and the others. She knew Yang was still faking her smile, but she had to admit, it still hurt.

Blake tried to bury her irrational feelings as deeply as she could, either by ignoring it or distracting herself from it, which was what she was doing now, or at least, trying to do.

She was reading one of her older books, it was a story about a regular man who was transported into a new world, a magical world.

But, instead of getting absorbed in the story, all Blake did was compare the protagonist to her.

He lived in a new world with endless possibilities, while she lived in her old one, but was only starting to realise the infinite possibilities of her world now. He was amazed with all of the things he could do in that world, while she was amazed with all of the things Yang could do.

Her eyes widened at the thought of the blonde, _'get a hold of yourself!'_ she told herself, _'stop thinking about her.'_

But the truth was, she couldn't stop thinking about Yang.

Not after she saw the demon transforming into a bird. Not after she saw how much strength she carried. Not after she was told of the many things all demons could do.

She couldn't stop thinking about her.

 _KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!_

It came from downstairs, presumably the front door.

She sighed in tiredness. "Hold on."

Despite what she said, the knocking only grew louder and louder.

She grunted as she walked down the stairs, not even bothering to say anything anymore. Her first guess was that it was her mother, who forgot to bring her keys while she was out. It wasn't the first time that happened, and Blake was more than certain it wouldn't be the last.

When she opened her door, she was very surprised to see Yang. _'Of course,'_ her mind retorted sarcastically, _'how could I not have guessed.'_ But in reality, Blake kept her mouth shut, taking a good look at the blonde, making sure to keep her expression neutral.

The blonde was panting slightly, her hands were clenched into a fist, and she looked so worried. "Blake!" she took a cautious step forward. "Is anyone with you right now?"

The older girl frowned. "What? Do you mean my parents?" she asked. "No, Dad's at work and Mom's-"

"Is anyone with you right now?" The blonde asked again, this time, her voice was louder and more solid.

"No!" Blake shouted in both confusion and irritation. She had no idea why the blonde was asking a simple question in such an odd way, but she had to admit that it did cause her to be a little afraid.

"Are you sure?" The demon begged, as if she forgot that Blake had been dwelling in this house for the past few hours, and lived in this house for a much longer time.

"Yes!"

Hearing that word, the blonde visibly sighed. Her grip loosened and her worries were fading away.

"Yang, what's wrong?" Blake questioned, fearfully.

The blonde took a step back, "Uh," she said, looking to her left. "N-nothing."

The sight angered Blake. Even when something clearly was wrong, the blonde still didn't want to tell her anything. "Ugh! Fine!" Blake said, her voice almost loud enough for the whole neighbourhood to hear. She closed the door, not wanting to see the blonde's face, but that didn't mean she couldn't hear her voice.

"Blake, please forgive me," Yang said, her voice was muffled, but Blake heard her loud and clear.

"No," she sternly replied, "Not until you tell me what's going on."

Maybe Ruby was right. Maybe Yang really didn't have a choice. Maybe she wasn't supposed to say what was going on. _'But that doesn't mean she can't at least give me a hint,'_ Blake declared, her mind set as she thought so.

"I-" The young girl sounded hesitant, "I just…" She gulped, "please open the door."

"Like I said." Blake rolled her eyes despite knowing that the blonde couldn't see her gesture. "Tell me what's going on, or I won't say anything to you anymore."

"Blake, please!" The girl's voice rose and became more fragile. Blake almost considered opening the door because of her voice. Almost.

Instead, she decided to let the blonde talk to a door, giving her the silent treatment. She smirked when the blonde pleaded more and more, knowing that it was definitely the right type of treatment to give to the demon.

 _CLANK_

There was a sound coming from inside her house, a cracking sound. It caught Blake's attention, knowing that she was the only person currently in this house. Or, at least, she was supposed to be.

She only noticed how dark her house was when she was walking towards the kitchen, where she thought the sound was coming from.

The only light source was the ray of the sun, finding it's way into the girl's house through the windows. But that still didn't mean that her house wasn't scary at all.

Her footsteps were slow and almost soundless, not wanting… whatever was causing that noise to know where she was, but also in case the intruder made another noise.

 _'_ _Maybe it's a raccoon,'_ she thought realistically. It was hard to believe that the small animal would somehow be able to get inside her house, but that scenario was much better to believe in than her darker thoughts.

"Blake?" The blonde's voice could still be heard, but barely, especially from this distance. "Blake, please, please let me in, you have to let me in."

She guessed that the blonde only said that because of the silent treatment, but it still comforted the girl to know that Yang wasn't leaving anytime soon. But she still did ignore her cries, not because she was mad at her anymore, but because she was trying to find whatever caused that noise.

 _CLANK_

There was that sound again, this time, it sounded louder than before, which could only mean one thing. She was getting closer.

Now, she was able to determine that it was in fact, coming from the kitchen.

"Hello?" she desperately asked. "If… if this is a prank, then it's not funny!" she knew it was far from the truth, but she desperately wanted it to be nothing more than a joke.

Her footsteps stopped when it happened.

When she finally saw him.

She desperately wished she didn't.

A man, possibly twice her age, was standing wobbly in the corner. His mouth was moving, muttering something, but no voice could be heard other than his breathing, uncontrolled and fast. His hair was coal black, and his shirt and jeans were torn, yet to psychical damage could be seen from this man.

His black eyes were looking down, not noticing Blake's present… yet.

But what caught her attention wasn't the man himself, but rather, what he was holding. What was causing the clanking noise.

It was a sword.

He pulled it up, and hit the iron bar of her window, seemingly for no reason at all.

 _CLANK_

The action caused the same noise.

Her breathing fastened, along with her heartbeat. She only managed to take a few steps back before the worst scenario happened.

The man looked at her.

His eyes were curious and unseeing at first, and they were looking right through her. His eyes were the definition of madness itself.

He blinked, and his eyes changed from bewilderment to recognition.

Similar to a night terror… the man, no, the _demon_ …

He grinned.

* * *

 **Beta : Pontius Pilot**

 **Author's Notes : Hey guys! I hope you like this chapter, and I also hope you don't mind cliffhangers. Otherwise, well… sorry. It's gonna be a rough… but don't worry! I'll make sure the next chapter is worth waiting for!**

 **Also, I changed the cover image because I didn't know who made the previous one, and I didn't want to publish something without crediting the person who made it. (Thanks for reminding me, Pontius!)**

 **I credited the artist on the description of the story, in case you are wondering.**

 **Please leave a review on what you thought of this chapter and what you hope will happen in the next one! Thanks for reading, and goodbye!**


	5. Her Knight

**Warning : Violence And Blood!**

 _'_ _No!'_ Blake's mouth was shut, but she felt like she was screaming. Her hands were shaking almost uncontrollably. She felt unusually weak and nauseous. Her heartbeat was pounding in her ears. Everything became cold and numb when he grinned.

Her entire body was screaming at her to do one thing only.

Run.

So she did.

Her legs carried her with their maximum speed, letting her guide them towards the front door, towards the exit.

But no matter how fast she ran, the demon was faster.

Blake forced herself to stop, realising he was already right in front of the door, blocking her from it.

The large iron sword he held in his hand was dangling loosely, as if he made no effort to hold his weapon at all. But even so, the dark-haired girl knew she shouldn't mess with this demon. His coal black eyes already proved how much chaos and destruction he could cause.

"Blake?" came the muffled voice from the other side of the door. It sounded as quiet as a whisper, Blake instantly recognised who it belonged to. "I know you're probably not even listening but-"

"Yang!" she screamed as loud as she could, hinting the blonde that something was wrong.

"Blake?!" this time, the voice sounded louder and much more concerned. "Blake! What's going on? Let me in!"

Yang attempted to break the door by slamming her body towards it. The loud impact made the dark-haired girl jerk away.

The intruder looked at the door behind him and sneered towards it, amused by the girl's attempt to get into the house.

"Open the door, Blake!"

"I-I can't!" she stuttered at her honest reply, fearing the intruder in front of her, who was merely observing the situation with a delighted face, as if this was merely an entertainment for him. "He's blocking the door!"

"What?!" Yang's cry filled with distress perplexed the other girl. "Who!? Who's blocking the door?"

The demon grunted, suddenly not as engrossed in this whole situation anymore.

In a flash, he charged towards her. His speed was unimaginably fast for her to even try avoiding.

A loud 'thump' was all she heard.

All of a sudden, she felt a growing, pounding pain from the back of her head, as if she had been hit by a giant hammer. It forced her to close her eyes, scrunching her eyebrows in agony.

"Ugh…" she moaned in pain, trying to stand up. But for some reason, she couldn't find her footing.

Even when she tried as hard as she could, Blake couldn't find her own strength, not with the enormous discomfort interrupting her from thinking. When she opened her eyes, everything was hazier than usual, to her surprise. She tried moving her head, it only worsened the pain.

Everything was spinning and she couldn't understand why.

No matter how much she wanted to move, to run, and to leave, she strained herself to not move a muscle and rest herself for a bit, knowing that even the slightest bit of movement could cause an immense pain.

"Blake!" she heard Yang's voice, overlapped by the high-pitched ringing in her head.

She didn't even bother responding, knowing that the blonde wouldn't be able to hear her voice, not in her current state.

The pain had subdued, but it was still there, lingering. She could see the intruder, walking away from her and onto the front door. She didn't know what he was trying to do, but she saw that it was an opening to escape, and tried her hardest to move.

She'd found that she was sitting down, leaning against the wall.

She was certain that she'd been slammed against it.

She grabbed onto the wall for support, slowly standing up. She used her right hand to clutch the hard surface and the other to hold her head, which wasn't cleared of it's fog yet.

Blake took a step, but that was all she could do before the demon stood right in front of her, eyeing her with a look that reminded her of a predator. At that moment, she felt like she was a small, helpless prey.

Her ears picked up another 'thump', this time, it was less noisy, but she felt dizzy again.

She tried to blink away the blur from her eyes, and couldn't understand why her two wrists were in pain.

It was when her mind began to clear did she realise that she was being pinned against the wall. Her wrists were held by his hands, his grip was hard as stone.

"Yang," she tried to call out, but her voice was weak and hoarse, almost like she hadn't drink anything for days. She wasn't sure that the blonde could hear her. She wasn't sure that even the intruder could hear her.

"It's who he needs," the man in front of her said incoherently. "He'll be proud of me."

She squinted her eyes in confusion, wondering if she heard it right. _'He?'_ she questioned, blinking a few times in puzzlement.

"He'll love me," he kept muttering despite the lack of response from the woman in front of him.

Blake realised that whoever this demon may be, he wasn't in his right mind.

Then, she spotted his sword, lying down on the floor, unused. She noted that it was only barely out of her reach.

 _'_ _Please let this work,'_ Blake thought, gulping in down-right terror of what was about to happen.

Afterwards, she kicked his stomach with her knee, using all of her strength to make sure he would be in such a great pain so she would be able to slip off from him.

He was too preoccupied by whatever he was thinking to dodge her attack. It had the effect she desired.

He let her go immediately, clutching the area below his chest with his arms, wheezing painfully, unable to comprehend what had happened. Blake knew it wouldn't last long, so she grabbed the sword, and ran towards the door.

 _'_ _No,'_ was her thought when she saw what was in front of her.

Somehow, during her short blackout, the intruder had put a heavy sofa from her living room in front of the door, blocking anyone from coming in or out of her house.

It took Blake only a few seconds to figure everything out…

She was trapped.

"Yang!" she screamed again. "Please! Help me!"

The blonde had been trying to break in, repeatedly slamming herself onto the door. But, after hearing the dark-haired girl's voice, she tried even harder than before.

"Hold on Blake!" Yang yelled, unrefined strength visible in her voice.

 _BANG!_

Blake knew the younger girl must've used her body to use it to slam the door. The sound was loud enough to scare her. It made her take a step back.

"C'mon!" the blonde half-yelled half-pleaded. Her tone of voice already gave out how badly she wanted to open the door.

 _BANG!_

The couch moved a little, but that was only it.

Blake realised that Yang couldn't get into her house, not in time. She was alone.

"You…" a deep, raspy voice came from behind her, growling not unlike a beast.

It only took him one word to tense all of the girl's muscles and made her temporarily forget how to breathe properly.

Blake turned around, finding that the demon was glaring down at her menacingly, his right arm still holding his stomach in pain and a hint of distress still visible in his face.

Her eyes trailed onto the sword she was holding, but she knew very well that she couldn't use such a heavy object with her weakened state. Not to mention that the intruder was most likely experienced in battle, and how he was much older and stronger than her.

Instead of using the metal object, she looked around the familiar surrounding, striving to find something, _anything_ , that could help her in any way.

The demon took a big step forward, and on instinct, Blake grabbed an umbrella and threw it towards him, alarmed at how heavy the plastic object felt when she held it.

The intruder used his strong arm to block the object, doing it with only little effort. But when he redirected his gaze, expecting to see the girl, he instead saw a table lamp being thrown right onto his face.

He had no time to dodge.

 _CRASH!_

While he stumbled back in pain, Blake dashed towards the stairs, locking herself in the room that was the furthest away from him, her own room.

She didn't have any choice but to chose her own room. Her parent's room was locked and she didn't have the key, plus, she felt safer in her own room rather than in anywhere else. It provided her with comfort, no matter how little that may be.

The pounding still didn't leave her head, but it was greatly reduced. Her breathing was fast and uncontrolled. She felt an unusual adrenaline buzzing in her entire body, as if she had been running in a marathon.

She tried her absolute best to push these sickening feeling aside, and concentrate herself in trying to find whatever could help her defend herself from the monster that wanted to do nothing but horrible things to her.

She grabbed her phone, but before she could even turn it on…

 _BANG!_

The fragile door was already starting to crack, and Blake knew she had only a small amount of time. The police, nor anyone in that matter, wouldn't be able to help her in time. So, desperately, she threw her phone away, realising that she truly was alone.

 _BANG!_

Her eyebrows furrowed in determination, grabbing only a few items and telling herself that her small, crazy plan would work. It must.

 _BANG!_

The wooden barrier broke and fell down into pieces. Blake's jaw dropped at the sight, both marvelling and fearing the intruder's strength. He emerged from behind it, growling like a lion, showing his teeth.

But Blake already planned ahead.

Using her deodorant, she sprayed it into his eyes, like using a pepper spray, causing him to scream madly in pain and cover his eyes with his arm.

Blake took the opportunity to slam his face using the thickest book she could find. The encyclopaedia.

This time, it was his turn to be leaning against the wall. And Blake practically used every item in her room to hit him with.

Her chair. Her desk lamp. Even her treasured books.

He stumbled back, loosing his balance, unable to stand up without the support of the wall. Blake looked around, and found that no more hard object could be thrown at him. So, with confidence, he used his own sword and swung it towards him, certain that it would be enough to knock him unconscious, maybe even more.

But, confidence wasn't enough for Blake to stop the intruder from grabbing the weapon at the last second. He regained only half of his strength, but it was enough to stop the girl's attack, the distance between the sword and himself only two inches.

Blake quickly tried to pull the weapon away from him, but his grip was unearthly strong.

While his right hand was used to grab the sword, his other one reached out and grabbed both of her arms, his pale hand wide enough to hold the small girl's arms. Blake tried to squirm out of his hold, but, like her other efforts, it was hopeless.

She gritted her teeth, cursing herself at her stupid attempt. Tears started to form in her eyes.

With a smirk, he pulled the sword away from her, his eyes never looking away from her or even blinking. It caused the girl to shudder beneath his horrifying eyes, instantly reminding her of the endless, unforgiving black hole itself.

She couldn't even feel it until at a much later time, she was chocked and slammed against the wall again.

The pain she felt was nothing compared to the horror that devoured her.

She tried to fight him, tried to land a punch on his face. But his fist already made contact with her cheeks, the force so strong that it sent her reeling backwards.

It hurt to even move. Her body felt like it was being drowned in sands, too heavy for her to move.

Everything was too heavy. Too tiring.

Her senses slowly became more and more numb to the point where she couldn't tell whether she was sitting or laying down.

She could only rely on her weak senses to determine what was going on.

She could only look as he grabbed both of her wrists, tying it with a rope.

She could only see as he grinned in victory. He might even be laughing, she couldn't tell.

She could only feel herself loosing the battle she didn't even want to participate in.

She could only accept her defeat in the battle between reality and slumber.

She knew she had lost.

Whatever he was planning for her… she knew she would never come back.

It only struck her now that she would never see the faces of the people she could gladly call her friends and family.

The image of her mother appeared in her mind, looking at her with those gentle eyes that she'd always loved. The eyes that were always filled with so much patience and care.

Afterwards, came her father, whose eyes were filled with a familiar strength and pride. She had always tried her best to be like him. To be strong, helpful, and generous. She wanted to be him. Yet now, she wasn't even sure if she could achieve that small goal…

Then, came the faces of her friends, her friends that knew her well. _'Pyrrha… Jaune… Ren… Nora,'_ she counted in her head, those welcoming faces appearing and disappearing in a flash.

She wasn't really close to them, nor did she spend so much time with them. But now… she was starting to wish she _could've_ spend more time with them.

When all of her good friends were gone… her best friends came.

The white-haired heiress of the Schnee Oil Company, Weiss. It was such an unfortunate event that she hadn't seen the girl for a couple of days. _'She'll definitely be mad at me,'_ she sighed internally, a smile creeping up to her lips.

Next was her closest friend, Ruby Rose…

It pained her to think that the young dorky brunette would miss her greatly.

But it pained her more to know that she had taken away the irreplaceable smile from the girl's lips by being gone.

 _'_ _Take care of yourself…'_ Blake thought, hollowly.

And lastly… came the girl who changed her life… Yang…

Guilt empowered her, remembering the way she had treated the blonde during this entire day. 'I'm sorry,' she wanted to say, not just towards her, but towards everyone that cared about her.

Sleep was consuming her, and she was fighting it less and less as seconds ticked by. Struggling proved to be pointless, so she didn't struggle at all, not anymore.

Her vision darkened, similar to the setting sun that was whisked away by the cold, dreadful night. Objects became nothing more than blurry colours, contrasting with one another, slowly desaturating.

The aching, painful ringing had slowly decease in volume, but so did her mind.

Her eyelids slowly rested themselves. She felt like she had a rough day at school and was just going to take a long comfortable nap.

Sleep. She wished that was what she was about to do.

Cold.

That was what she felt.

Unnatural cold, slowly creeping upon her entire body, like a snake. Grabbing a hold of herself, slowly attaching itself to her skin, chaining her.

Blake let it chained her.

She was just too tired to do anything at this point than just to… let it be.

 _'_ _This is it…'_ she thought.

… key word, 'thought'.

The loud, crashing noise of the breaking glass barely awakened her. The clattering noise of the shards making contact with the floor invaded her eardrums, setting an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach.

But it kept her awake… for the time being.

"You."

That voice… it was so familiar, yet, so foreign to her. It was devoid of anything but pure anger. It was so different from what she used to hear.

Blake knew who that voice belonged to, but she still refused to believe it. After everything she did to her, everything she'd said, the girl was still willing to help her.

It was too impossible to be true.

But, it set light to the one thing Blake didn't want to believe anymore.

Hope.

So, with only that as her strength, Blake tried to open her eyes once more.

Nothing was clear. Everything was just a mixture of colours.

But one particular colour caught her eyes.

A familiar bright glow of yellow.

Gold.

A burning, roaring fire of a yellow that could only belong to one person only.

"Get. Away. From her."

 _'_ _Yang.'_

Her voice… it was filled with power and wrath. So much so that Blake was already afraid just from hearing it. Even when she knew she shouldn't be.

She wanted to find her voice again, just so she could call out her name. But her mouth refused to cooperate with her, it wouldn't even open.

She wanted to stay awake, this time, not for herself, but for Yang.

But no matter how badly she wanted to stay in the conscious realm, sleep wasn't something she could escape, not at that moment.

Blake thought she heard the clicking noise of a gun, but she couldn't be sure of it.

She couldn't be sure of anything anymore.

Before she knew it, everything was already black.

The last thing she heard was a growl.

A growl that reminded her of a beast.

* * *

"…"

Blake heard a noise, but she couldn't precisely pin down what she was hearing.

Everything was pitch black, and she didn't know why.

It was all very… distant… very muted.

"…"

A voice. That was what she heard. A voice that belonged to… somebody. But she couldn't hear what he or she was saying.

"…ake…"

The voice was beginning to clear. It was a woman's voice, and it was calling her name. She was starting to be able to gather her thoughts, wondering where she was or why she was even unconscious in the first place.

She opened her eyes, but everything was still unclear…

She could only see a woman… a woman with blonde hair… saying something to her, but she couldn't understand what.

"I…" she could only manage to whisper, "don't… understand what you're… saying…"

The blonde, however, kept speaking. "…gonna…you…move…" her voice was getting clearer, but the girl could only understand a few words.

The fog in her mind was beginning to clear. And so did her vision.

She could see that she was in her own room, laying down in her bed. _'What? When did I even…'_ she couldn't finish her thoughts, especially not after realising who the blonde was.

"Yang?…" she croaked, glancing at those familiar lilac eyes.

The blonde put her index finger towards her mouth, a gesture that meant she shouldn't speak. To avoid any more damage, Blake decided to wisely kept her mouth shut.

Suddenly, the unforgiving cold she'd felt was slowly deceasing away from her, replaced by this pleasant warmth that made her feel safe.

A few moments later, she started to regain her senses. Her fingers twitched once at a time, and soon she could move her wrist, and later, it was her entire arm.

The pain started to disappear, to her relief, and she started to feel more and more awake.

Her vision started to become more untroubled and unclouded. The objects surrounding her became less blurry. She wanted to slowly get back up and asked what happened, but, she saw the blood trailing down from the blonde's forehead… and she remembered.

She jolted up, gasping for breaths and coughing in pain. She placed her hand on her chest, feeling the fast rhythm of her heartbeat.

"Blake! Blake, hey!"

She turned towards the source of the voice, finding the bleeding blonde leaning towards her, worried. "It's okay," she said, trying to form a smile in her lips to calm the girl down.

So, knowing that she wouldn't get any useful information while she was freaked out, Blake placed her hand on her forehead, opening her mouth as she tried taking deep breaths.

"What happened?" Blake managed to ask in-between-breaths, her eyes trailing away from the other girl to try and notice more of her surroundings only to find… him.

The demon.

"No!" she screamed, not even caring if the man wasn't even awake, lying on the floor.

She may had recovered from the psychical pain, but the psychological pain was always the hardest to heal.

"Hey, hey, Blake!" the blonde coaxed, "It's okay, he won't hurt you anymore."

"Yang?" she questioned, "Wha… what happened?"

"He… I took care of him," Yang stated, grimly, "He won't be waking up for at least another hour."

"You…" she clutched her forehead, her mind still not entirely clear. "What happened?"

The demon, the _good_ one, sighed. "I had a feeling someone was following you, that's why I came…"

The dark-haired girl sat in silence, allowing the other girl to continue.

"I don't know what he's doing here in your house, but he's bad news." Yang scratched the back of her head and hissed guiltily, "I sort of… break your window so I could… stop him…" she looked down dejectedly. "I'm sorry…"

Blake didn't know what to say, choosing to look around her room and found out that it was messier than ever, similar to an airplane crash. Her study desk was slightly cracked. Some of her books were thrown away and scattered everywhere. Many things were misplaced and broken. It led her to believe that the battle between the two demons must've been very insane, to say the least, especially considering the wounds that existed in the blonde's arms and face.

Blake was flabbergasted, too shocked to even think about anything.

"Blake, are you alright?" the concerned voice of the girl echoed in her head.

"No," she truthfully replied, hugging herself. "I'm not fine."

Yang stretched her arm, but recoiled as she looked to the side, biting her lip. She opened her mouth, but no words came out of it. So, with no other choice, she decided to stay silent for the dark-haired girl.

Everything still felt too surreal for Blake. She still couldn't believe that what she just experienced… was actually real. "Yang…" she said, her voice a whisper. "What does he _want_ with me?"

"I," Yang gulped warily, before sighing in defeat. "I don't know, Blake, I really don't know."

There was guilt evident in her tone of voice, it made Blake realise something important that she'd missed. Yang fought the intruder for her. The blonde'd sacrificed her own well-being just for her own safety.

They barely knew each other. Yet, Yang was willing to fight for her.

The thought itself sent a warm feeling into Blake's chest.

After examining the younger girl again, Blake said, "You… you're bleeding."

The girl didn't miss the way the blonde's eyes widened, even when it happened for less than a second. Yang quickly covered it with a fake easy-going smile and replied, "Oh, this," she looked at her own body that was covered with bruises, "don't worry," she waved her hand, "I'm fine."

"No, you're not," Blake deadpanned. "We need to tend your wounds or else it'll get worse."

"Wow, really?" Yang asked, looking at her wounds again and realising how bad they looked. "Huh," was all she said.

"Yang," Blake said, frowning, "didn't you notice you were hurt?"

"Um…" she tried to come up with an excuse, but couldn't after seeing the girl's frown. "I was kinda," she cleared her throat, "too busy saving you." A light shade of red could be seen on her cheeks.

"Saving me?" Blake repeated, "what…?" she examined herself as well, and realised that she did feel well… almost _too_ well for someone who had been slammed against the brick wall twice in one day. She looked back at the lilac-eyed girl and could only ask, "How?"

"Duh," Yang answered, pouting as she raised her hand. "Didn't I tell you before?" she raised her head proudly, "magic."

Blake frowned, "magic?" she asked, "but, I thought…"

"What?" the girl asked innocently.

She quickly looked away, not wanting to offend her. "Nothing," she lied. After clearing her throat, Blake said, "Well, why don't you used your magic to heal yourself then?"

Yang chuckled in a not-so-confident way, "Well, you see, the thing is…" Blake knew that whatever she was going to say, it would make her face palm. "I kinda used up all of my aura, which is how I can use magic in the first place, to… heal you."

Blake predicted she was going to face palm. So face palm she did.

"Let me get this straight," she said, her hand rubbing her template. "You used up all your strength-"

"Aura," the blonde corrected with a sorry look on her face.

"You drained all your aura to help _me_ instead of yourself?" she summarised.

The blonde, in response, nodded, confirming her statement.

"Yang," she said, mustering as much worry as she could in only one word. "Why would you do such a thing?"

Said girl knitted her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"Haven't you been to an airplane before?" she emphasised.

"No-"

"Do you know what they told everyone in case there was an emergency?" Blake cut her off.

Yang shook her head, confused and interested at the same time.

"Always apply the mask on yourself first before applying it to others!"

"Well, that's pretty stupid of them," Yang chirped in, crossing her arms and shutting her eyes.

"Wha- Yang!" she yelled, dumbfounded. "You're the one being stupid!"

"Am not!"

"Yang, you literally could've died," Blake stated calmly and reasonably.

"N-no I won't!" the blonde denied, reminding her of a child.

"Oh really?" She raised her eyebrow, smirking at the battle in which she was clearly winning.

"Y-yeah." It sounded more like a question than an affirmation.

"… you're horrible at lying."

"… yeah," the blonde sighed, confirming Blake's statement.

"Oh, by the way Blake," she said, perking up. "Do you have Professor Ozpin's number?"

"Professor?" she repeated questioningly, cocking her head to the side. "You mean the headmaster?"

"Yeah, him, do you have his number?" the blonde eagerly asked.

"No, but I do have the school's number, why do you ask?" Blake narrowed her eyes. "Wait, how did you get accepted into Beacon, especially in the middle of the semester?"

"Um… reasons that definitely has nothing to do with anyone being a demon at all…" Yang rambled and coughed afterwards, realising what she'd just said.

The raven-haired girl pictured the man in her head. He was always so creepy. Nobody knew how old he was, and, nobody ever questioned it. He was the definition of mystery itself. As far as anyone knew, he didn't even have a family. It was so odd… not to mention suspicious…

Her eyes widened at the realisation. "He's a demon too, isn't he?"

"What?! How do you know!?" the younger girl cried.

"It's pretty obvious," she merely pointed out.

"Wow, Blake, are you some kind of genius?" The demon's eyes were sparkling with amazement, as if she'd seen a magic trick.

The human smirked. "I wish."

"So, can I have it?" Yang asked shyly.

"Hold on," the dark-haired girl looked around her room, trying to figure out where she put it. She spotted the device on her desk, grabbing it and giving it to the blonde. "Here."

"Thanks." Yang graciously accepted the small rectangular object, looking at it for a short moment before asking, "Um, how do you use this thing?"

Blake sighed, rolling her eyes, then proceed to take her phone away from Yang. "What do you even need it for?" she asked, dialling the number.

"Um," the blonde struggled to find her words. "So he knows what happened to you, what _almost_ happened to you."

The dark-haired girl stopped playing with her phone, discomfort starting to consume her once more. "What do you mean?"

The demon pondered about it for a moment, before answering, "Why do you think our kind is non-existent to yours?"

Blake frowned. "Why?" she asked.

"It's because we demons have some kind of… well, it's like a human's version of a cop. Only we demons call them Huntsmen and Huntresses," she explained while smiling. "We fight bad guys and protect the innocent and stuff. Professor Ozpin is a huntsman too," she frowned, thinking, "actually, he's like, the leader of all the huntsmen. And he's in charge of taking care of bad demons, like this one for example," she gestured towards the unconscious intruder.

"Get it?" Yang asked in the end.

While Blake slowly nodded, she replied, "Yeah… I think I understand." She looked down on her phone and said, "so, that's how you got accepted."

"Hehe," the blonde chuckled, "yeah."

The dark-haired girl finished dialling the school's number, and wanted to give it to Yang when she suddenly saw the intruder… with his eyes opened.

She couldn't even registered what had happened until a few seconds later.

"Don't you even think about touching my Blake again."

The demon had tried to grab her, but he was blocked by Yang, who was currently holding his hand.

Still not fully conscious, he hissed and tried to squirm out of her hold. But the blonde didn't even move, she didn't even blink. "He's gonna be glad when I told him!" he said, suddenly punching her in the stomach, causing her to let him go. "He'll love me!" he said, running towards the window, "just watch me!" was the last thing he said before jumping out of it.

The demon followed from behind, yelling, "Hey! come back here you-"

"Yang." With that word, the blonde looked back at the girl, all traces of anger gone from her face.

"Yeah?" she questioned.

Blake shook her head, "Don't."

The blonde frowned, worried. "Are you sure?"

Blake looked down, not wanting the other girl to see how afraid she was. "…He won't come back," she said, hoping it sounded confident.

"I won't let him," the blonde growled, surprising her with how defensive she was.

Blake looked down for a moment, before noticing how the demon was still clutching her stomach, right where he had hit her.

She didn't say a word as she walked into her bathroom, grabbing a few tools from her first-aid kit. She came back and saw the sight of the demon, looking at her curiously. She shrugged nonchalantly, "To tend your bruises."

The blonde wanted to deny her, but knew how pointless it would be. So she sat down, along with Blake.

Blake used the wet towel to wash away the small blood from the girl's arms, but also to stop it from bleeding. Then, she went downstairs to get some ice and applied it to her bruises.

Yang flinched and tried to suppress her hisses whenever the healing tools came in contact with her unwell skin. That fact made Blake realise that, no matter how strong and fast she was, Yang was still just a kid in the end, a kid who was lost in a new world.

"I'm sorry."

Despite the pain she felt, Yang managed to fake a cheerful tone as she answered, "What? Why?"

Blake looked straight at her, remorse visible in her amber eyes. "For acting the way I did today."

The blonde genuinely smiled this time. "It's not your fault, Blake."

But Blake refused to accept her way of thinking. "Yes it is. I got mad at you only because you didn't tell me why you didn't come that day. It's not your fault if you can't tell me some things."

"No, Blake, the thing is," she glanced down for a short moment, "I actually can tell you why I didn't come that day."

"It's because of demons like… him, isn't it?" she asked.

Yang looked to her side, contemplating on what she should say. "Partly," she muttered.

There was still a trace of anger rising from the pit of Blake's stomach, but she pushed it all down, realising that it wasn't right for her to be feeling this way. "Look, Yang," she started, "whether or not you want to tell me the reason why you were absent that day is completely up to you." Blake leaned backwards, "I should've respected your privacy," she sighed. "If anyone should be sorry it's me."

"I, it's just," the demon tried to explain, "it's just hard-"

"Don't," Blake firmly said, then smile as she continued, "it's okay."

The blonde stayed silent for a few moments, looking down, thinking. "Hey, Blake?" she asked, grabbing the girl's attention.

"Yeah?"

Yang gave her a honest and shy smile. "When I first saw you, I thought, 'hey, she might be nice.' But now, I know that it is true, not to mention that you're pretty."

The way the demon had said it. It was so innocent and pure. She wasn't flirting, nor suggesting some kind of sexual activity. She was just being truly honest. It made Blake blush harder than she should. "Thank you, Yang," she simply replied, not trusting herself to say anything more.

She breathed out a sigh of relief when she was done treating the demon's wounds. She looked at the cuts and bruises again and realised something.

"Hey Yang?" she asked, hesitantly.

"Yes, Blake?" the blonde responded attentively.

"Where do you live?"

"What?" Yang asked, caught off-guard. "Why the sudden question?"

"You've been wearing that shirt ever since we met," Blake explained in the most simplistic way possible, looking at the blonde with her narrowed eyes. "I'm suspicious."

"D-don't be!" Yang replied, waving her hands. "I'm okay, there's nothing to worry about!"

Unfortunately, no matter how much Blake wanted to believe her, she knew it wasn't the truth. She thought about it for a long time, before finally asking, "Yang, why don't you…" she looked away in embarrassment, "why don't you stay at my house?"

The blonde's jaw dropped, it only served to make her even more flushed. "Blake?" she asked in a too innocent way.

"Only for a couple of days!" Blake said, irritated. "Unless you wanna keep sleeping… wherever you sleep."

"Hey! The tree isn't that bad!"

Blake deadpanned. "Yang. Please don't tell me you've been sleeping in a tree."

"…no?" At that moment, Yang was crowned 'The Worst Liar Blake Have Ever Met… Ever.'

She sighed, too tired to even argue. "Only for a few days," she said, gritting her teeth.

 _'This might not be a good idea,'_ she thought.

"Okay, well, it's not that I don't want to say no to you Blake," Yang cleared her throat and attempted to smile as she said, "but… How are we gonna tell your parents?"

 _'_ _Okay, this is definitely not a good idea,'_ Blake thought, realising that she didn't thought this through... again.

* * *

 **Author's Notes : Hey guys! I hope you like this chapter, I worked really hard to make it actually scary and not too cheesy… anyways, please leave a review, any kind is welcomed, and also, tell me what you want to happen in the next chapter, or what you even think is going to happen later.**

 **Who knows, I might get some inspiration… Bye!**


	6. Gaining Approvals

"How are we gonna tell your parents?" Yang said as she grinned sheepishly.

Blake stared at her, fazed by her question, but still determined. She sighed, hoping her tone sounded certain as she replied, "Look Yang, you saved my life, so I will not let you sleep on who-knows-where. You're going to stay with me until we find you a decent place to live in."

Yang pursed her lips, but she knew there wasn't any real reason to decline the girl's offer. Still bothered for some reason, she decided to look away.

The human grit her teeth, forcing herself not to yell at the annoying blonde. ' _This girl,'_ she thought.

"Just try not to bother me or else I'll change my mind!" the raven-haired girl exclaimed, crossing her arms.

Truthfully, Blake couldn't stay mad at the blonde, not for a long time. No, she couldn't stay mad at Yang after what she did for her, and especially not after realising how cute the demon actually was.

' _No! Bad Blake!'_ she yelled at herself.

The dark-haired girl knew she should act this way. It was her attempt to chase away the sadness from the demon… And after examining Yang's still worried face, she knew that she hadn't succeeded.

"Blake, is this really what you want?" the blonde ask, her voice eerily low. The human looked into the demon's lilac eyes, and for the first time, the light in her eyes were dim, as if the sun was being dragged away from the afternoon sky. It just wasn't _right._

"Do you really want me to live with you? Or is it just… evening the odds?"

As much as she wanted to say no, Blake herself had to wonder if it really was true. She looked down on the floor, thinking.

' _Is it?'_ the human asked herself. ' _Do I really want to help her just because she saved me?'_

She looked up at the demon, and was surprised to find her smiling understandably. Blake knew what that face meant. It meant that she was okay if Blake didn't want her to stay. She was okay if Blake didn't want her at all.

Guilt consumed the girl. ' _No, that can't be true,'_ she denied, silently shaking her head, a gesture that went unnoticed by the blonde in front of her. ' _I'm sure there's more to it than just… this.'_

So she looked at Yang, this time, really looked at her, and tried to list everything about the demon.

' _Okay, first of all, she's reckless,'_ Blake thought, briefly looking at the broken window. ' _And she doesn't understand human culture, and she's too innocent for her own good.'_ She frowned at her own thought, feeling her body temperature rising for only a degree. ' _Far too innocent…'_ Her eyes widened at realisation, and she quickly took a deep breath while closing her eyes, knowing that there was more to it than that.

She opened her eyes, and found the same girl standing in front of her, patiently waiting for her.

' _She's also nice, kind, pretty…'_ Subconsciously, Blake lowered her head. ' _Not to mention thoughtful, fun, and…'_ her thoughts trailed off when her amber orbs met those pools of lilac.

' _And those eyes…'_

Words, no matter how many there were, just simply couldn't capture what was so amazing about those eyes.

At that moment, Blake knew what she had to say.

"Yang… I won't say that I'll like it," she said, looking at her side afterwards as she continued, "living with you, I mean." The raven-haired girl took a step forward, confident of herself and of the words she was about to say. "But that doesn't mean I don't want to help you." She took a deep breath before adding, her voice lowering down in volume, "neither does that mean I don't like you."

The demon bit her lip, and shook her head afterwards. "But, I thought you should help yourself first, like in that plane of air thing that you mentioned."

"I thought you told me that it was a stupid rule," Blake countered, smirking at her small victory.

"Can't you just… not care about me?"

The human's eyes narrowed for a second, before her face turned completely neutral and emotionless. She found it a bit ironic because of how her expression contrasted greatly with what she was about to imply. "Nope," she said, popping the 'p'.

"Sorry Yang." She shrugged, not actually feeling any remorse. "But I want to help you, and frankly, you can't tell me otherwise."

Sparkling was the demon's bright purple eyes. Opened was her mouth. The sight brought the colour of pink into the other girl's cheeks as she flinched just a little bit.

The blonde had a look that reminded Blake of a child that had finally gotten the toy she'd always wanted.

"What?" Blake asked a little too defensively.

But the blonde wasn't bothered by the girl's frightened tone of voice. Not even one bit. "Thank you, Blake," she said with little to no hesitation. "It means a lot more than you think."

The shade of red on the human's cheeks, which used to be a light pink that was barely visible, turned into a bright crimson red that could be spotted from miles away.

Unexpectedly, there was a chain of loud and fast knocks coming from below, most definitely the front door. Blake sighed in relief, glad that she didn't have to respond to the blonde, letting those sound break the heavy tension and change the topic.

"Blake! I forgot to bring the keys!" was the muffled voice that came from the other side.

The human rolled her eyes while the demon looked at her curiously. "Is that your mom?" Yang asked with a raised eyebrow.

Blake tiredly answered, "Who else could it be," with a grumble.

She took a step forward, thinking, 'Sometimes I just wish Mom wouldn't be so-' but suddenly, she froze.

"Wait."

She looked around the room, and realised how trashed it was. A lot of things were scattered everywhere, but it was mostly her books. There were shards of broken glass, which used to be her window, lying on one side of her room.

To put it simply, everything was either broken or out of place.

"What's the matter?"

She looked at the innocent Yang and realised how trashed _she_ was.

The colour of purple and red were scattered all around the blonde's arms, it had basically caked her entire body. Even a nearsighted person could tell how horrible she looked.

"We need to cover you!" Blake declared in the most non-sexual way possible.

Yang furrowed her eyebrows, puzzled. "Cover me, what's-" she looked at herself and finally understood what the dark-haired girl meant. "Oh…" she said in understanding.

Carefully tip-toeing through her room, Blake opened her cupboard to reveal her many dark clothes. She scanned at each and every one of cloth, and after some time, she found what she was looking for.

Grabbing her dark purple jacket, she told the demon as she showed the dark object, "This might help."

"Thank you," Yang said politely, immediately wearing the girl's jacket. "But what should we say to her?" she asked afterwards.

Blake shrugged. "We'll just have to make it up as we go," she excused herself, not wanting to make a big deal out of this.

The dark-haired girl carefully walked out of her room, doing her best not to step on any object. The blonde offered to help her, but Blake told her she could handle it… if only that really was true.

Blake yelped as she tripped over a book. She would've fell if not for the demon's fast reflexes, incredible speed, and strong arms.

"Whoa, be careful Blake."

At that moment, lilac was what filled the girl's mind.

She couldn't say anything. She didn't even want to. The only thing she wanted to do was to keep staring into those eyes. Those mesmerising, glowing, bright lilac gems.

"Are you alright?"

Blake blinked a couple of times, and only now did she realise what just happened… and how awkward their positions were.

The demon's right hand held her waist tightly, while the other grabbed her shoulder. Their legs were entangled, and their faces were only a few inches apart.

She quickly detangled herself from the blonde's hold out of sheer embarrassment, scolding herself at how long it took her to snap out of her weird trance.

"I-I'm fine," she said, then silently cursed at how easily she stuttered at such a simple sentence.

It was an odd behaviour of hers, she'd never remembered stuttering before, but whenever she was with the demon, at times it was as if she forgot how to communicate, like now, for instance.

"Good."

Yang brushed herself off from whatever unseen dust there might've been, looking at anything but the human in front of her, a small blush growing in her face as well.

"Let's just go," Blake suggested, which received a nod in response.

As they walked down the stairs, Blake secretly looked at the other girl, the colour of red creeping up onto her cheeks once again. She prayed the blonde couldn't see how flustered she was.

Blake still couldn't quite believe it. Yang, a girl she'd only met for no more than a couple of days, risked her own well-being just to save her.

The demon had stood up for her, and saved her from being kidnapped or worse. Yet, she didn't even show a sign of arrogance towards her heroic actions.

It was too wonderful to be true. Blake grew up believing that fairytales were nothing more than… well, fairytales… stories… nothing more.

She grew up believing that she was alone in this world.

Yet, Yang had proven her wrong, simply by crashing into her life… literally.

When they arrived on the front door, Yang immediately commented, "so that's why I couldn't open the door!"

The sofa was still blocking the door, and the woman from the other side of it was still knocking the door, the action growing louder and more furious as more time passed.

"Blake! What are you doing in there?"

"In a minute, Mom!" Blake answered, hoping that it really would take no longer than a minute for her to move the sofa.

Before she could even touch the object, the blonde grabbed it and lifted it, only making a small grunt of distress in the process. "Don't worry, I got it!"

She walked slowly towards the living room. Blake directed her on where she should put the hard object.

Afterwards, the dark-haired girl asked, "are you alright?"

"What?" The blonde replied her question with another question, before blinking in realisation. "Oh, this, don't worry about it! It's fine, I'm a demon, remember!"

"Still…" Blake muttered. "Don't overwork yourself, okay?"

Yang's eyes widened in surprise for a brief moment, but the raven-haired girl saw her change in demeanour. The demon quickly tried to cover her shock with a wide grin. "Okay Blake!"

After they walked towards the front door again, Blake quickly opened the door only for her dishevelled mother to come in, stumbling while she carried to plastic bags. The older woman sighed. "Oh my, Blake, the weather's awful." She didn't notice Yang's presence yet.

Looking at the heavy bags, the blonde immediately grabbed it and said, "Please, let me."

"Yang? Why, hello," her mother said after blinking twice. "It's nice to see you again," she continued.

"Hi, Mistress Kali!" Yang greeted her cheerfully. "It's nice to meet you too," she said just as nicely.

The older woman immediately frowned. "What happened to your face?" she asked, referring to the small bruise on the left side of her forehead.

Her mother was very worried about such a bruise that could be considered small compared to her other ones. It made Blake very glad that she decided to lend the blonde her jacket.

Startled by the unexpected question, Yang couldn't answer her question. "I, um…"

"She tripped," Blake cut in quickly as she shrugged. "It was a wet floor, she didn't read the sign." She smirked on purpose, knowing it would make her lie even more believable. "It was very funny."

"Well, it's not that funny," the blonde countered, defending her own pride.

"You should be more careful." Kali said, concernedly, walking towards the blonde to gently touch her cheeks.

The blonde's eyes widened at the gesture, she seemed really troubled by it, but she quickly smiled to hide her true emotions. "Don't worry Mistress!" she said while grinning widely, "I'm fine."

"I'm sure you are," her mother replied kindly.

Blake flinched and looked down. She really didn't want to lie to her mother, but it wasn't as if she had any real choice. Her mother was very sensitive when it came to pain. Well, when it came to other's pain.

The girl learned this from watching her behaviour whenever her father received some damage during his work.

Kali looked at the two bags carried by the demon and smiled. "Let me show you where you can put these things."

"Okay," Yang simply replied with a smile of her own.

After they left, the dark-haired girl narrowed her eyes and looked down on the floor. 'How could Mom not have noticed?' she asked herself, referring to the oddly-placed umbrella and the broken desk lamp.

But her eyes trailed to her side as she remembered. ' _Oh, right, mind-altering powers.'_

The girl decided to leave it be, knowing that they could deal with this problem on another time.

Meanwhile, in the dining room, the blonde put the bags on the table, exactly as the older woman had instructed. Kali complimented how strong she was for being able to carry those two plastic bags with such ease. The blonde waved it off, smiling while telling her that the bags weren't too heavy.

They were putting out the foods and beverages from the bag when Kali noticed the jacket in which her guest wore.

"You know, Blake has that exact same jacket."

Luckily, the raven-haired girl already knew this topic would come sooner or later. And she was prepared. "I let her borrow it for a while, she's been feeling under the weather lately."

Her mother nodded in agreement. "Yes, it has been raining a lot lately."

Her comment, yet again, had made Blake feel bad. 'I'm sorry Mom,' she thought, greatly wishing that her mother could hear what was in her head.

Once they were done putting those things were it belonged, her mother asked, "since you're not feeling very well, why don't you stay with us for dinner?" Before Yang could answer, she continued, "I'll call your parents and make sure they know you're in good hands."

Having no other choice but to agree, the demon smiled and replied, "Sure! Thanks, Mistress!"

"I'm starting to feel honoured," her mother said as she smirked, flattered by the nickname that was given to her by the blonde.

Yang grinned lopsidedly. "Would you prefer Your Majesty instead?" she asked after a chuckle.

"Oh my, Blake is very lucky," a wide-eyed Kali commented.

"Mom!"

* * *

The three women sat in the dinner table. Kali smiled, taking her time while eating her food as she observed Yang, who seemed to really be enjoying her plate of dinner. Meanwhile, Blake chose not to say anything, watching as the demon and the human interacted with each other.

At first, the dark-haired girl thought that it would be hard to gain her mother's approval. After all, Yang could sometimes came across as weird or even creepy.

But, it turned out, Kali really liked the blonde girl, and vice versa.

Things were going well… No… They were going too well, and Blake wasn't going to take this lightly.

' _Something bad will happen,'_ Blake thought, narrowing her eyes as she took a bite, ' _I can feel it.'_

It was a matter of time before-

"So, how's Blake like in school?" her mother chirped in, smiling almost demonically… pun unintended.

Blake almost dropped her utensil.

' _Yup, that's it, that's the bad thing,'_ Blake said in her mind as she took a bite, grumbling as she did so.

"Well…" The blonde looked up, thinking. "I didn't actually get to see her that much at school, but from what I can tell, she's really smart!"

"I know that, but, what about her friends?" Kali said, smirking as she looked at her own daughter, whose face was the literal definition of mortification itself.

' _Oh glob, no, not this kind of conversation.'_ Blake immediately looked at Yang, her eyes pleading to the blonde not to say anything remotely embarrassing… or to say anything at all.

But Yang didn't even look at her. No, she was looking at her mother, grinning widely like a maniac. It was at that moment that Blake knew, she was doomed.

"Well, I'm sure she _has_ friends," Yang retorted, taking a bite.

"Gee, thanks," Blake piped in.

"Wow, really, I'm surprised. How many does she have?" Kali asked, somehow managing a serious expression despite the more-than-weird question.

"Hm… probably three, at best." At least, Blake thought it was a weird question meant for laughs and nothing more.

"Seriously Yang?" the dark-haired girl grunted.

"Huh, I thought she only has one," her mother thought, her face hardening as she took another bite.

"You too, Mom?" Blake was practically whining at this point, helpless, unable to change the topic of the conversation.

"Yeah, I thought so too, turns out, she's actually a _tad_ bit more sociable than we thought," the blonde smiled innocently, earning a glare from the introvert.

"I can't believe this," Blake muttered under her breath. She really wished she could scream right now, if not for the fact that she was eating.

"Well, to be honest, I've only seen her with Ruby," Yang countered, shrugging. "But what do I know, I'm a new student."

"Yes, Ruby…" Her mother slowly nodded as she remembered the brunette. After taking a small bite, her mother questioned, "the small girl, right? The one with those adorable silver eyes?" She then chuckled, "Ruby's such a nice girl, I'm glad Blake is friends with her."

"Can we please talk about literally anything else besides this?" Blake begged, not liking where this conversation was going as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"By the way, how is she, Blake? I haven't seen her for a while now." Blake internally sighed in relief, thankful that they were finally talking about something less embarrassing.

"She's doing fine, Mom," Blake responded. "We talked a lot."

"That's good," her mother said, glad.

They stayed in silence for only a moment. Eventually, her mother started speaking again, this time however, it wasn't about Blake. "What about you, Yang?"

"Me?" Yang questioned.

"How do you feel about your new school? Did you make new friends?" Kali elaborated.

"Well…" Yang cringed, rubbing the back of her head.

"Oh, come on, you can tell me anything dear." Her comment widened the blonde's eyes. Finally, Yang smiled brightly and honestly.

"At first, I was a little scared that I wouldn't fit it. But now that I got Blake, I have nothing to worry about!"

Blake rolled her eyes, finding the blonde's words to be highly exaggerated. "She's actually doing great, Mom. She even manages to make friends with the popular kids."

"Yeah, but, none of them are as fun as you," Yang countered without a hint of hesitation.

Blake blushed, looking at her, perplexed. "You think I'm fun?" she asked, her voice suddenly quiet and fragile, but it didn't go unheard by both the blonde and her mother. She realised what she had just said and looked at older woman. The expression she was wearing already terrified the raven-haired girl, and she had no choice other than to forcefully take a bite of her food.

"Well, this is very interesting," Kali commented, which only served to deepened the two young girl's blush.

"Let's just… talk about something else," Blake pleaded out of desperation.

Her mother smirked yet again. Without missing a beat, she said, "Like the fact that you're as red as a tomato?"

"Mom!" Blake couldn't help but yell.

Her mother laughed and later said, "Okay, I'll stop… for now."

Blake was now gritting her teeth, she did it so hard that she was certain her teeth would crack. She took a deep, long breath to hold herself from lashing out. "I will gladly sell all of my books only so I can pay you to shut up."

Her mother simply waved off the girl's small banter, knowing that her daughter wouldn't actually do such a thing. Even though the dark-haired girl actually was considering it.

After taking another bite, Kali started to interrogate the blonde girl. "So, Yang, what does your parents do for a living?"

' _Crap,'_ Blake knew that answering her mother's questions would be too suspicious. It was Yang's parents after all, not hers. So, it was all up to the blonde.

"Well…" Yang looked at everywhere but Kali's eyes.

"I assumed your father is most likely a police officer, seeing as how you moved here," her mother stated.

"Y-yeah!" the blonde easily agreed with her.

"Wait," Blake cut in before they changed the subject. "What does moving here have anything to do with being a cop?"

Her mother's expression changed. It went from her calm and fun expression into a more solemn and grim one. The dark-haired girl knew immediately that it was something serious, whatever it was. And it certainly made her curious.

"Well?" Blake asked.

Her mother said nothing but, "It's not my place to say."

"Mom," the dark-haired girl said, mustering as much emotion as she could in only one word. "Please tell me what's going on."

Guiltily, Kali looked down onto her food, yet she didn't take another bite, suddenly loosing her appetite.

Blake looked down as well, knowing that her mother was right, and she shouldn't pry answers from her. 'Sorry Mom,' she thought and really wanted to say, yet her mouth was sealed from uttering any word.

Thankfully, Yang saved the atmosphere from getting even heavier by commenting, "Um… wow! This food is very delicious. Mistress, what is in it?"

"It's from my favourite restaurant," her mother replied, "I think it's called 'pesto-dressed veg'… I don't know what it means, but it smells delicious, and it has fish in the recipe."

"Huh." Blake raised her eyebrow, trying to lighten up the atmosphere herself. "No wonder it's good."

"Wait, you didn't make this?" Yang asked.

"No," Kali replied, sighing as she said, "I wish I could've, but I'm afraid I've been too busy to cook lately."

"Aww, that sucks," Yang said as she pouted, "I'm sure your cooking must be really good!"

The older woman could only laugh at the blonde's kind-hearted comment. "Please, stop flattering me," she said in-between-chuckles.

"I'm serious!" The demon defended despite her smile. "I'm betting your dish is so great, you'll put other professional chefs in shame!"

"Oh, stop it you," Kali responded after a chuckle. "You haven't even tasted my cookings yet," she countered, smirking and leaning forward just a little.

"I don't need to in order to know how good it is," the blonde retorted, wearing a grin on her face.

Their conversation from there was just small talks that involved a lot of blushes and awkwardness coming from the two teenagers and more of teases from Blake's mother.

When she felt that it was the right time, Blake finally asked the question that had lingered from the back of her head ever since this evening when… when it happened.

"Hey, Mom, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?" Her mother obviously noticed the slight quiver in her voice. She instantly gave Blake her full, undivided attention.

"Well…" The dark-haired girl didn't know where to start.

But, fortunately, the blonde continued her words for her. "My parents are going out of town for a while, and I was wondering if you…" she ducked her head shyly, unable to form any more words.

"If you could let her stay for a few days," Blake finished.

"I would love to, but, unfortunately, it's not my place to say-"

The sound of the opening door interrupted her words. All eyes reflectively shifted towards the source of the voice, as well as their heads.

"Kali?" a voice that unmistakably belonged to her father, Ghira, called.

"Speak of the devil," was all her mother said before she stood up and walked away, presumably towards her husband.

Yang's eyes widened at Kali's statement, before narrowing down skeptically. "Does she know?"

"Know what?" Blake questioned.

"That I'm… you know," the blonde whispered.

"What?" It took the human a few seconds before she understood what the demon meant. And when she did, she could only roll her eyes and shook her head exhaustedly. "Of course not, it's an expression."

"Hm… If you say so…" the blonde nodded, but her expression remained bothered.

"How are you feeling?" Blake asked, looking at the jacket Yang was wearing, or rather, what was hidden beneath it.

Looking down, the demon replied solemnly, "I'll manage."

The raven-haired girl knew something was bothering her, so she asked another question. "What's wrong?"

"Huh?" Yang said before blinking a few times. "W-what do you mean?" she stuttered, clearly caught off-guard by the girl's question.

But Blake stayed silent. She knew that the younger girl knew what she was talking about.

After only a short moment of silence, the blonde finally cracked. "It's your dad…" she said before sighing. "I'm worried that he won't like me."

The dark-haired girl understood what she meant. She knew that her father wasn't like her mother. Blake was secretly also scared of what would happen. But she couldn't let the blonde know, or else both of them won't have any confidence to go up to him and ask him if the demon could stay.

"Look, Yang…" she took a deep breath, trying to find the right words that would boost the blonde's confidence. "He'll like you, I'm sure of it."

"But what if he-"

"Don't," Blake retorted before the blonde could say anything more. "Just be yourself, okay?" she knew that it was one of the oldest trick in the book. But she had no other choice. She knew that she had to make Yang feel okay, even if it was only temporary.

The raven-haired girl wasn't as confident as she seemed. She was just really good at hiding her true emotions. So, her voice a whisper, Blake said, "If I can like you, then so can he." Bits of red could be seen forming around her cheeks, and when she looked back at the blonde, she was surprised to find that the demon was also blushing as well.

"Blake?" her mother yelled. "Can you come here?"

"In a minute, Mom!" Blake answered, hoping her mother would wait for a few moments.

But, to her surprise, it was her father that said, "Now." He wasn't yelling, it was actually calm in a spine-chilling way. Everyone in the room could practically feel the power in his voice. And only from hearing his voice, they all knew he wasn't calm at all.

So, as quickly as they could, the two girls walked towards the married couple.

When they saw the two adults, they could see that worry filled their faces, which made the two teenagers worried as well. Kali put her hands on her hips, yet she looked afraid rather than mad. Whereas Ghira looked to be really angry, crossing his arms and furrowing his brows.

"How could you not see this?" The man asked, not realising that the girls were present.

"I don't know, it was windy, I was exhausted, and we had company," The woman listed off.

"Company?" He echoed, raising his eyebrow. "What…" his words trailed off as his eyes looked at his side, at Blake and Yang.

"Hi… Dad…" Blake said rather awkwardly.

Her mother was the first one to react. "What is this?" she said, pointing downwards.

The two of them looked at each other, wondering what they meant. So, their eyes followed Kali's index finger…

' _Oh…'_ Blake thought. ' _How could I forget?'_ she asked herself in a, surprisingly, non-sarcastic way, looking at the bent umbrella lying on the floor as well as the now broken table lamp.

Lying to her mother was easy, well, easier than doing it to her father. Kali was an optimistic person, despite her calm nature. She trusted her daughter and knew that she would never do anything… immoral, even when she knew that Blake was hiding something from her.

The raven-haired girl remembered when she first failed her test. She was around 8 years old at that time. And she remembered the way she looked at her mother sadly.

" _So, how did it go?"_ her mother asked, despite knowing what happened just by looking at her.

" _I… um… I got the best score in the whole class,"_ she looked away while lying, fidgeting and frowning as she did so.

It was one of the many reasons why she was able to detect whether or not Yang was lying.

The blonde sometimes reminded her of when she was young. Innocent and naive…

Ghira's voice snap her back to reality. "Well?" he asked, narrowing his eyes and looking at Yang rather suspiciously.

Lying to her father was a different story. Blake was more than certain that she'd never done this before. Not to mention that her father was a cop, not just that, he was the chief of this whole city. He knew firsthand signs of when someone was lying, and Blake was sure that she wasn't an exception.

"T-the wind, Dad," she stuttered.

"Really?" he said, raising his chin. "How so?"

"Yang and I forgot to close the door." Blake looked back and forth between the blonde and her father. "Oh, by the way Dad, meet Yang," she said, introducing the demon.

"Hi, Sir!" The blonde extended her arm. She was far from confident, Blake could tell, but she was at least willing to make a good impression.

"Hello," her father said, shaking her hand for only a brief moment, letting it go only to cross his arms once again. "Who are you, exactly?"

"W-well," the blonde tried to be confident in his gaze… and failed. "I'm a new student… and Blake's new friend."

"A new student? But isn't it in the middle of the semester?" He immediately asked, not willing to let his guard down, unfortunately.

"Y-yeah, my parents moved around a lot… it's part of their job," Yang explained.

"I see… Where do you come from, exactly?" The venom in his voice wasn't hidden too well, that was, if he was planning to even hide it. Luckily, Yang was still able to act out her confidence.

"Vacuo, Sir!"

"Which side of Vacuo?" He glared down at her, as if he was talking to a criminal.

"Um…"

"C'mon, dear," Kali, thankfully, chirped in before things could get any worse. "Let's just eat dinner."

It took only a few minutes before they were back at the dinner table, this time, there were four people instead of three. Ghira had only started his meal, but the others were almost done.

It was a quiet dinner, mainly because Blake didn't know what she should say, and neither did the rest of them.

' _It's obvious I can't lie to him, he's just too perceptive to fall for any lies,'_ Blake thought, trying to clear her head. She started brainstorming ideas on how she could make her father agree on letting the blonde stay, but she realised that none of them could actually work as smoothly as she'd hoped.

' _Maybe… maybe she really can't live with me,'_ Blake thought, loosing hope.

She looked at the blonde, who had been looking down on her food and trying her best not to do anything wrong.

Yang was the one who drove her crazy for the past few days, changing her view on the world, making her second-guess what was real and what was not.

But… Yang was the one who'd saved her life.

' _If only he knew what she'd done for me…'_

Suddenly, the invincible lightbulb above her forehead flickered on.

Her eyes widened as she quickly pieced together an idea that just came into her head.

After dinner, Blake excused herself saying that she wanted to go and do her school assignment with Yang, which got a nod of confirmation from the demon.

When they went into her room, Yang's jaw dropped before she said, "Oh… that's right, I forgot about this…" as she saw the mess that was Blake's room.

The dark-haired girl only glanced at it for a moment, smirking as she did so, before turning her attention back towards the demon. "I have a plan," she said, her tone firm and calculative. "You go and distract Mom while I go talk to Dad."

The blonde froze, looking down. "Thanks again for everything," she said after quite some time, her voice unusually soft. Then, she looked up at the dark-haired girl and smiled affectionately. "You're a good person, Blake."

Red returned into the human's cheeks. She looked to her side, avoiding eye-contact, and answered just as softly, "it's no big deal," unable to conjure a stronger tone in her own voice.

"Well, alright then!" The blonde cheered, regaining her usual bright personality that Blake was already used to. "Good luck, Blake!"

Temporarily lost in the girl's lilac eyes, Blake was only able to reply, "thanks," after faking a cough in order to re-obtain her composure.

' _Maybe living with her won't be that bad…'_

* * *

Blake peeked into the living room, where Kali and Yang were currently sitting down, looking at who-knows-what. It appeared to be some type of an old book. She briefly wondered if it was her family album.

She grunted. ' _Mom… You better not show her those baby pictures,'_ was her thought, despite knowing that her mother couldn't actually read her mind.

The raven-haired girl shook her head. ' _Now's not the time,'_ she scolded herself.

With her footsteps almost as quiet as air itself, Blake walked towards her parent's room, which was currently inhabited by her father.

 _KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!_

Her knocks were soft, wavered, unconfident. Just like how she felt at that very moment.

"Come in," came the strong voice from the other side.

Slowly, she opened the door.

Her father was sitting in his desk, scribbling on a piece of paper almost furiously. Papers and books surrounded him. He seemed to be very busy. "What do you need?" he asked with little care, but when he realised that the person on the door was his daughter, he quickly put the pen down and looked at her directly.

"What is it, Dear?"

His tone of voice changed almost significantly. There was no trace of his usual ruthlessness that he'd always displayed in his work. Blake always enjoyed seeing the way his father would change his attitude whenever she was around. It showed how much he cared for her.

Blake, as soon as she realised he was talking to her, shook her head lightly. "It's nothing Dad, you seem busy," she excused.

"No, nonsense, I could never be too busy for you."

' _If only that really is true,'_ she bitterly thought, breaking their eye-contact.

She was sure her father had noticed the gesture. "I have to show you something," she explained as briefly as she could. "Something important."

His eyes narrowed. "What is it?" he asked, protectiveness ringing around his voice.

His daughter took a deep breath and braced herself, knowing her plan wasn't very great… it wasn't even good, in her own opinion. But it was the only plan she had, and no matter how crazy it was, she was willing to go through with it if it meant that Yang had a chance of living with her, no matter how small that chance might be.

"Come with me."

Her heart was thumping very loudly as the two of them took the short journey towards her room. Her hands were shaking, but she clenched it anyways, hoping the vibration would stop.

She didn't say a word as she let her father figured out why her daughter had brought him upstairs. She chose only to watch as his jaw dropped, looking at his daughter's disheveled room.

"My, Blake, what happened?!"

'Here goes,' she dryly thought.

"Look, Dad, there's something I need to tell you, about Yang," she started, momentarily cursing at herself because of how cliche that sounded.

Before she could press the issue further, her father said warily, his face turning from shocked to horrified, "are you saying that… she did this to your room?"

This time, it was Blake's turn to drop her jaw. "What? No!" she shrieked. "Yang would never do that!" she defended with no hesitation.

"Then who did?"

This. This was where she would carry out her plan. No, this was where she _must_ do so. It was too late for her to turn back now.

Her father wasn't just any cop. He was the chief. The leader. The most powerful of all.

She, as his daughter, knew better than everyone else how much of a waste of time it was to lie to him.

So she wouldn't.

Her father needed to know what the blonde did for her.

It was the only way for him to let her stay.

…Plus, sooner or later her parents were bound to find out how wrecked her room was. She could probably try and fix her room before they both find out, but that would be too much work.

She opted to tell the truth instead, no matter how hard it would be for her to explain to her father about the existence of demons. That was, if she had no choice but to tell everything that had happened in full details.

Blake swallowed before saying even a single word. "I… I don't know who did this, Dad," she assured him, "earlier this day, whoever he is, came into my house…" she started to explain. "It was a man, in his late thirties, dark hair, black eyes," she described, and later shuddered as she imagined his face, his horrifying face, coming closer and closer as he stretched out his hands, reaching out to her…

"Blake?" She looked up, and found his father's eyes, filled with so much concern for her.

"He… he strangled me, Dad, and he…"

She couldn't say anything anymore, his father didn't allow her to as he pulled her into his gentle, yet firm hug. It was comforting… she had no idea how much she missed this.

"I'm so sorry that happened to you… I wish I was there to protect you…"

They stayed in silence for a moment unknown to Blake. When she was able to find her voice, she quickly said, "It was Yang, Dad… she was the one who saved me…"

Only when his father wiped the tear from her face did she realised that she was crying. She clung onto him harder. He didn't say a word, knowing that she needed this. And she was grateful for it.

They never see each other as often as they used to. His father was too busy with work, and she was too busy with school.

But it was moments like this that reminded her that no matter what happened, he would always be her father.

And she would always be his daughter.

"Dad, she saved me… and now, it's my turn to save her… she needs a place to stay, only for a few days."

His father's grip loosened. Curious as to why, she pushed away from his hug, only to find him looking at her rather unhappily.

"Dad…" She had a guess on what he thought about her wish. And she didn't like it.

"I, I can't be sure yet, Blake… she's just too… different." He had a struggle on finding his words, something that didn't happen very often. "Does your mother know?"

Blake's face hardened. "She doesn't know, and I don't want her to."

His father nodded in understanding. But his eyes quickly changed from the caring, father he used to be to the cold, hard and strict police officer he must act in his work.

"I don't trust her, Blake. There's something about her that feels… off. You shouldn't get too close to her, I don't even think you should be friends with her anymore…"

Those words hit Blake like a truck. No, more like thousands of trucks that came and purposefully crashed into her at full speed.

Anger was bubbling in her stomach, and it soon filled her chest.

She wanted to yell at him or even hit him.

"Dad… why?"

… But she couldn't… Because he's her father.

"I'm sorry Blake. She seems like a nice kid, but… things are… they're starting to get more and more dangerous…"

She didn't even listen to his reasoning. She was just too heartbroken to find that her father didn't even consider her offering.

"Dad… please, just this once, can you trust me?"

Hearing her plea, his father flinched. "Blake…"

"I trusted you even when you didn't tell me anything," she stated coldly, knowing how guilty he felt about this specific topic. "Now it's my turn Dad." She took a step back away from him, straightening her shoulder, standing strong. "Now it's my turn to be trusted."

She walked away from him. She could tell that he badly wanted to say something, anything that would comfort his little girl. But he also knew that there was only one thing he could do that would let her forgive him.

Once she was on the first floor, the first thing she looked for was a certain extroverted blonde demon.

Laughter could be heard from the living room, so that was where she went.

Out of all the things the dark-haired girl expected to see, Kali and Yang laughing while reading a book was… actually, she wasn't surprised at all, especially considering how much they've bonded in the dinner table.

"What are you two doing?"

Yang perked up as soon as she heard the girl's voice. "Blake!" She smiled widely, causing the other girl to blush only a little. "Come check this out! This book is _paw_ -mazing!"

The introvert blinked twice, frowned, and eventually, complied, walking towards the demon.

"Apparently, there's this things called puns, and they are _pun_ -believably great!"

Blake made the best 'are you serious?' face she could give. The blonde didn't even blink as she stared back at her.

Her mother tried and failed to stifle her laughter. "Blake, she's a natural at this!"

Blake could only roll her eyes. ' _This is going to go well,'_ she thought sardonically, looking at the book in the demon's hand.

"One _hundred_ cat puns? Mom, why do you even have this?!"

A cough interrupted their small and short conversation. The raven-haired girl turned around, along with the rest of them, only to find her father.

He was looking to his side, and he appeared to be in a deep thought. Then, his gaze shifted, and it made Blake curious, not because of why he was here, but rather, who he was looking at.

It wasn't her.

It was Yang.

He pointed towards the blonde. "Yang, was it?" he asked, all signs of hostility wiped away from his voice, which Blake quickly noted as a good thing.

The blonde visibly relaxed, her shoulders dropping as she answered, "yes Sir, Yang Branwen."

"Branwen?" His eyes widened for a brief second, before narrowing back down in a gentle manner. "Listen, why don't you stay in our house?"

In an instant, all of the people in that household with the female gender's jaw… dropped. Especially the blonde's jaw.

"…Sir?" she asked, not quite believing what she had just heard. She looked at Blake, who could only shrug unknowingly, just as surprised as the blonde herself.

"Blake explained everything to me." Yang's eyes went wide with fear. "Everything I need to know," he confirmed, putting his hand up.

He smiled warmly and said, "Thank you. You can stay here as long as you like."

"Thank you, Sir." She practically beamed. "Thank you so much!"

"It's no trouble at all," he said, waving his hand. "If you need anything, anything at all," he emphasised, "don't hesitate to ask."

The blonde shrugged, smirking as she replied, "I probably will, but still, thanks."

A now grinning Kali stood up and said, "Well then, why don't I show you to your new room?"

Yang glanced at Blake, who replied with a nod. "You go on ahead," the dark-haired girl said afterwards.

When her mother and her new housemate left, the girl turned and faced her father, who was looking away from her, possibly still feeling guilty about what he'd said earlier.

"Dad… thanks."

She could see that he wasn't expecting a gratitude, but he quickly covered his anxiousness by smiling at her. He sighed before saying, "anything for my sweetheart." He wrinkled his nose. "I'm just glad she isn't that 'sunny' guy again."

"Dad!" she whined. "He was just a friend!"

She immediately regretted saying that word when his father looked at her knowingly. She knew that he knew that they used to be more than friends, despite not being public about it. 'But we were only crushing on each other for like, three weeks!'

His father shook his head disappointedly. "Seriously, 'Sun'? What kind of name is that?"

"Dad, he didn't try anything funny! Be was just asking about this math problem," Blake explained, trying to defend the poor boy.

"Well, I'm glad he didn't." Ghira looked at the watch on his wrist. "Well, I'm off to bed now, and you should too."

"What! Is! This?!" came the scream of her mother from upstairs.

"I-it's nothing! Just let me explain, Mistress- Please stop freaking out! Don't- don't call the cops, please!" came the loud, and less-panicked voice of Yang afterwards.

"Oh… right," Blake said as she cringed.

"Well, let me just take care of that," Ghira said, already starting to walk upstairs. "You can go and sleep in our room, okay?" he suggested.

"Dad, I'm not six anymore," Blake said with flushed cheeks.

His father smiled. "You are in my eyes."

Blake thought about the possibilities of where she could sleep. Option one was the guest's room, which was, or would be occupied by Yang. But then she remembered that the room only had one bed… so she quickly scratched that option.

The second option was the couch. ' _No,'_ she only thought before eliminating that option as well, not liking how hard the fabric was.

And the third, final, and only option was her parent's room.

The dark-haired girl sighed in defeat. "Fine."

"Goodnight, Sweetie," his father said, giving her a brief hug, to which she gratefully returned.

"Goodnight, Dad." She smiled, even when she knew he couldn't see her face.

When he left to deal with his wife, Blake sighed in both amusement and irritation.

' _Why does he not like Sun?'_ she asked herself, along with the universe.

Sun Wukong was merely a small, childish crush that she'd developed around the age of 11. It faded away as easily as it grew.

' _And what does he mean when he said he's glad that she isn't… Wait…'_

Sun was her secret ex-boyfriend.

Someone she used to like.

Someone she used to _date._

"Wait a minute…"

Her father just compared Sun, who he thought had once _dated_ her, with Yang.

"Wait a minute."

Which could only mean one thing… He thought… that she and Yang were…

"Wait a minute!"

* * *

 **Author's Note : Hello everyone! I hope you have a nice day, and if you don't, then I hope my newest chapter cheers you up… If it doesn't, then… Go get yourself some ice cream! You deserve it!**

 **Oh, and quick question, how are you liking the characters so far? Do they feel real? Or are they too flawless? I try my best to make the characters talk and act in a believable way. But sometimes I feel like they're cardboard and one-dimensional.**

 **So, anyways, this chapter is very long, and I hope you're not bored of it. The next chapter's gonna introduce... Weiss! And hopefully, if I won't forget, there will be WhiteRose included~**

 **So, um... Goodbye!**


	7. Adjustments

Today was one of the most… awkward mornings in Blake's life.

For once, when she woke up, Blake didn't expect her father to be laying down next to her, snoring loudly and peacefully. When she saw that sight, the girl almost fell out of the bed.

It set her mood into a grumpy mode almost immediately.

Next was the sound of laughter.

Mornings in the Belladonna family was always filled with the one thing Blake always liked. Silence.

So to hear not only one, but two voices filled with joy and gags irritated her.

Blake opened the door and her jaw dropped at the sight of Yang and Kali preparing breakfast together.

She almost forgot that she had a guest in her house.

To say it was uncomfortable would be an understatement.

Blake never saw her mother laugh that loudly for years.

And, while the sight did bring a warm feeling towards Blake's chest, she wasn't so comfortable to know that Yang was the one who caused her to be that way.

But, that wasn't the worst part, not even close.

She was trying her best to adapt with her new situation, when her mom came in with the bad news…

Even from seeing that empathic look on her face, Blake was already terrified.

"Honey…" she said, putting her hands on the clueless girl's shoulders, taking a deep breath before saying…

"Your toast was burnt."

It was at that moment that Blake came to the conclusion; it was the absolutely, without a doubt, the worst day in Blake's life.

* * *

"So…" Yang said, then coughed purposefully, looking at her own walking feet, her eyebrows frowning in focus. "Your dad told Mistress Kali that your room was thrashed because of a new… photo… call?"

"A protocol," Blake corrected, looking forward with confidence. "He told Mom that it was some kind of training so the cops could become more alert in situations."

The blonde stopped for a second, nervously looking at the other girl.

"Do you think she believed him?"

When Blake realized that the demon had stopped walking, she halted her steps as well.

She turned her body towards the other direction, away from her school. Yang was fidgeting, her lilac eyes glued onto hers, searching for an answer.

Blake tried to calm her down by saying, "I'm sure Mom believes him, she has to." She shrugged. "I mean, what choice does she have? None of us are hurt… anymore."

Her orbs of amber trailed down to the demon's arms, where her skin used to be caked with bruises and cuts.

"Are you sure you're okay?" the raven-haired girl asked out of instinct, "you don't have to go to school if you can't handle it."

The blonde frowned in confusion before looking at her arms as well.

Her eyes widened, realizing what the girl meant, and said, "Oh…" in understanding. "You mean these?" she asked, showing her unwounded arms freely, "don't worry about it! My aura's got it all covered!"

"Still," Blake countered, "don't you think you should be resting?"

Yang smiled genuinely at her. "I'm fine, Blake, honest," she said, "you don't have to be worried about me, I'll be okay."

Blake looked away shyly. She suddenly found the trees much more interesting than she initially had thought.

"Fine." She sighed. "But if you got hurt again, don't say I didn't told you so!"

In response, the demon giggled. "You got it, Blake!"

For the next minute that they spent on walking, Blake's cheeks were covered in the shade of pink that she desperately hoped no one could see.

When the school was in their view range, the famous redhead spotted them walking together. Blake could definitely see the expression of confusion written in the girl's face, but chose not to question it.

'They probably think Yang and I aren't that close,' she thought, then shook her head mildly. 'Wait, that's because we aren't that close!'

Her eyes looked at Yang again, who didn't notice that she was looking at her.

'I mean, sure, we lived together, but, we've known each other for only days,' Blake tried to stand strong with her own opinion.

'Still… it feels like I've known her for much longer than that.'

"Hi Yang, hello Blake!" the redhead greeted.

"Hi Pyrrha!" Yang cheered, waving her hand and smiling brightly.

"Hey," Blake said, her tone contrasting the blonde.

* * *

"Ah!" came the scream from the supposed empty room.

The echoes prevented Blake and Yang to hear what the girl was yelling afterwards.

That was what Blake heard when she and Yang finally arrived towards their destination. Well, almost. They were right in front of the class. The door blocked them from seeing what was happening inside the room.

After hearing the two voices, both the human and the demon raised their respective eyebrow and looked at each other.

"Um… is that normal? In a human school?" the blonde asked, scared.

After sighing and rubbing her templates, Blake responded, "This is high school, screams of horror are considered normal."

The demon was taken aback by her statement, and took a step backward.

Blake found it oddly satisfying to see the usually confident girl in a fearful state, her smile proved this fact.

"Don't worry," she chuckled, "I'm sure we'll make it out alive." She grinned when her attempt at scaring the girl worked.

Yang flinched and bit her lip.

That was expected.

But what was not expected was the action she made afterwards.

She pulled Blake away from the door, and took a step forward, shielding the dark-haired girl from it.

"Yeah, i-if something happens, I'll protect you!"

"Oh really?" Blake raised her eyebrow, forcing her lips not to form a smirk. "Even if it's one of the most dangerous creatures that ever inhabited this world?"

"Y-yes!" the demon replied hastily.

"A creature that even your kind fears," Blake added, stepping closer towards the girl, noting how stiff the girl became now that they were closer.

"Definitely!" It was as if Yang was telling herself -and not Blake- that she was ready.

"A creature that's so deadly you'll die just by looking at it," the human finished, grinning ear-to-ear.

"Absolutely!"

"Hm…" The dark-haired girl pretended to be thinking. "Why don't you open the door, then?" She asked.

"Right!- I will, I am about to!" Yang responded in an incoherent blabber.

After a while, Blake could not help but say to the unmoving girl, "You're… not opening the door."

"I, um- my wounds!" the blonde exclaimed, looking at her perfectly-okay arms. "It suddenly appeared and it hurts!" She pouted while wailing, "Please take me somewhere else!"

'Cute,' Blake could only say in her mind, not knowing how else she should describe the young girl in front of her.

"Oh really?" the girl asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Y-yes, it's um, it's one of the, um, the drawbacks, of…" her eyebrows knitted together as she tried searching for a believable excuse. "Of, um… being… a demon?"

"Well then…" Blake said, grinning lopsidedly. "I hope you don't mind if I…" she took a step forward, "open the door…" she grabbed the handle. "And show you…" she pulled it down, "the scariest creature known to mankind…" the door was being pushed open rather slowly.

"Blake…" Yang said. "What are you doing?"

"The creature known as…" Blake kept continuing despite the demon's pleas. The door was half-way to being fully opened now.

"Blake! Close that door!" the younger girl shouted out of panic.

"Weiss Schnee," Blake finished, smirking at the rarest sight she could ever see. Ruby was hugging Weiss, per usual, but what was interesting was how Weiss seemed to be enjoying it, in fact, she appeared to be hugging back the young girl.

"No!" Yang yelled, then frowned. "Wait, what?"

Her voice was heard by the two occupants of the room. They both looked at the source of the voice and stiffened in fear and embarrassment.

The heiress was the first to react. "G-get off me, you dolt!"

"R-right," the brunette replied bashfully, "sorry Weiss, I um- I just missed you so much."

Blake crossed her arms in satisfaction while the blonde besides her looked back and forth between each of the girls.

"Um, hi," the demon, eventually, greeted.

Meanwhile, Blake chose to say a much more fun thing that would certainly widen her smile even more.

"Well… at least you're still fully clothed."

"Blake!" came the shriek from the white and red duo.

The girl in mention merely chuckled and brushed it off. Then, she walked into the classroom with her demon following her from behind.

After putting her bag on her desk, Blake walked up to Weiss and said, "I believe you two haven't met each other," gesturing to the blonde and the heiress.

Yang was naturally the first one to greet her. "Hi there!" she said, her confidence radiating throughout the whole room. "I'm Yang! Yang Branwen!"

"Greetings, I am Weiss Schnee," the shorter girl replied courteously, "the heiress of the Schnee Oil Company."

"Also known as socks!" Ruby piped in from behind, grinning innocently.

The white-haired girl could only grunt and pinch the bridge of her nose in annulment. "It is not, nor will it ever be called socks, Ruby Rose!"

"Well…" the brunette fidgeted playfully before suggesting, "can we call it shoes instead?"

Yang chuckled. Blake rolled her eyes. Weiss sighed.

"What?" Ruby asked, putting her hands up. "Shoes are much cleaner than socks!"

The white-haired girl eyed her in utter disbelief before weakly saying, "Why am I… back to the topic."

Yang shrugged while smiling weakly, nervously. "Yeah, I, um, hope we'll be in good terms?"

Coolly, Weiss answered, "Yes, I hope so too."

* * *

Blake had a feeling that, despite the last words they said to each other, Yang and Weiss wasn't on good terms for some reason.

During class, Yang couldn't pay attention to class. Thankfully, the teacher didn't notice, but Blake sure did, and she was sure that Ruby did too.

The demon kept fidgeting, drumming her pen, and biting her lip. It was as if she was afraid of something.

The girl also noticed that Weiss was acting very off. The heiress stole glances towards the girl every few minutes when she thought no one was looking.

 _'_ _Something is very wrong,'_ Blake thought.

Just when she was thinking of what might be wrong, something small hit her forehead. She looked around, finding the culprit, and saw a very suspicious sight of Ruby grinning sheepishly.

"Read it," the brunette whispered.

The girl narrowed her eyes and looked down only to find that the object that came in contact with her was a paper that had been crumpled.

Blake looked up towards the teacher again, and when she was sure he wouldn't pay attention to her, she picked it up and read it.

 _Kay, Im pretty sure Weiss & Yang are mad at each other about something so… how about we get them to talk about it during lunch? :/_

Blake internally sighed, thankful that she wasn't the only one who thought of it.

She looked back at the young girl and nodded, indirectly telling her that she was on board with her plan.

* * *

Blake played with her food, something that she almost never did. Usually, she would eat her lunch with no hesitation, not because she was a big fan of eating, but because she didn't like wasting time by taking small bites.

But now, things were different.

She had to eat very slowly so she could make a conversation with her lunch companions and fulfill her new mission; getting the demon and the heiress on good terms.

"So… Yang," she said after taking a bite, "how are you liking our school?"

The blonde besides her seemed to be in a deep thought, which was why she was caught off-guard by the general question. "I, wha-? Oh, it's nice," she replied with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

Blake raised her eyebrow."Could you be any more precise?"

Yang rubbed her neck and her eyes trailed off to a side, not wanting to make eye-contact.

"Well…"

The raven-haired girl caught what she meant immediately.

"Are there any problems?"

"I wouldn't call them _problems_ per se, but, sometimes, I feel like the history of how Remnant was built is kinda…" She cringed, as if she expected a punishment for saying, "Wrong."

Ruby, who had been quiet during this time, gasped in shock. "What do you mean wrong?" she asked, joining what earlier was a duo conversation.

Even Weiss lowered her fork and spoon, interested in the flow of the conversation that had suddenly turned.

Yang was looking at her rather apologetically. "I mean, don't get me wrong," she raised her hands in surrender, "the guy who… invented this country seems good and all, but, um… don't you think that the things he did are purely because he wanted to live, and not because he loved his country?"

Ruby put her hand on her chest, gasping widely. Blake, at this point, couldn't tell whether she truly felt hurt or if she was just messing around.

"Hey! Don't talk about Wizard like that! He's a hero!" the brunette defended, crossing her arms, pouting, unintentionally making Blake squeal internally.

Suddenly, the heiress put down her dining tools and wiped her mouth diligently using a napkin. Afterwards, she, surprisingly, said, "He's a fraud. That's what he is."

"Wha- Weiss? W-what are you talking about?" Ruby sputtered, clearly not expecting the white-haired girl to side with the blonde. "Y-you always got perfect As in history! What do you mean he's a fraud?"

Weiss simply looked at her with narrowed blue eyes. "Ruby, do you honestly believed he could ran across town while dragging two bodies all in one _hour_?"

"Yeah!" the brunette cried out desperately, not wanting to lose.

"Oh really?" Weiss asked, her eyebrow raising in satisfaction as she smirked. "How? The _human_ body is incapable of doing such a task," the heiress explained matter-of-factly, sneering a little at the word 'human'.

Blake didn't miss it, nor will she take lightly of it.

'Why does she…' her thoughts trailed off as she pieced together the pieces.

Perfect grades. Silvery hair. Odd behaviors. Not recognizing basic human activities.

'Oh my gosh…' Amber eyes went wide, her jaw dropping.

"W-well, who knows," Ruby said, still stuttering, "maybe old-timey people are stronger than now-timey people."

Weiss shook her head, smirking. "I doubt that humans would be able to do such things. Humans are weak creatures, Ruby."

'She's not even trying to hide it!' Blake complaint, feeling so foolish for not suspecting the heiress' odd behavior and choice of words years ago. During all those years ago, she excused the girl's behaviors by thinking that she was the daughter of the richest man in the world and didn't have many social interactions.

But now that she learned many new things about the world, there was no doubt that those weren't the only reasons why the white-haired girl always seemed so different.

"So…" Yang's voice snapped her back to reality. "I'm not the only one who thinks history is completely ridiculous, right?"

The faint smile from Weiss' lips vanished in the blink of an eye. "No, you are not," she said coolly, logically. "I am not surprised that we share the same opinion when it comes the this country's history."

"Hating our great and awesome hero that is…" Ruby mumbled.

"Does that mean that we're good now?" Yang asked, her shoulders rising, tense.

The heiress merely looked at her, no warmth could be seen in her eyes; her expression was grim.

"Don't push your luck." She narrowed her eyes. "I may now consider you as my acquaintance but you are still far from earning my trust, much less respect."

The atmosphere changed in an instant. It was due to the Ice Queen's cold words, the dejected Yang, the very angry Blake, and the very awkward and scared Ruby.

"Oh…" Yang's voice was low, much lower than her natural bright voice. "I see."

Weiss' gaze fell onto Blake, and blue eyes widened for a brief moment, before she stood up.

"Weiss, where are you going?" the young girl questioned, looking up at her.

"The bathroom," the white-clothed girl replied, rushing off, walking away from them.

Blake wanted to yell at her, but stopped herself from doing so, hearing Ruby's concerned voice asking, "Yang? Are you okay?"

Her gaze fell onto the mentioned blonde, who was looking down, most definitely still shaken about what had just occurred.

"Hey, I know that Weiss could be harsh sometimes," Ruby said, trying to be reasonable. "But trust me, I know she doesn't mean any of it. I'm sure that once you two got to know each other, you'll definitely be besties!"

"Y-yeah." The demon's voice betrayed her words.

Hearing her voice, Blake couldn't help but stood up.

"Blake, what are you-"

"I need to talk to her, Ruby." Blake looked at the lilac-eyed girl and told the brunette, "Keep her company."

When the red-hooded girl nodded, Blake took off.

* * *

"Weiss! What was that?" Blake said as she opened the bathroom door, not giving a care what the white-haired girl was doing.

As it turns out, the girl in question was simply looking at herself through the reflection of a mirror. "What was what?" she asked, shrugging uncaringly.

Blake felt like the easiest way to talk to the girl right now was to slap her and yell her why she was mad at her. But, she knew that she should, instead, cool herself down. So she took a deep breath and closed the door.

She looked at each and every stall, and was thankful that it appeared that they were the only people in this room.

"Yang never did anything wrong," the raven-haired girl defended, crossing her arms. "You shouldn't treat her that way."

Light grayish blue eyes looked at her calculatingly. "With all due respect, Blake," she replied emotionlessly, "don't talk as if you know who you're talking about."

"Wha-nonsense?" Blake repeated, flabbergasted. "Weiss, I know her! We've been friends for-"

"Do you?" Weiss cut off, her tone rising. "I doubt she's actually your childhood friend, she does not look the part." Her lips formed a ghostly smirk. "Unless, of course, she's interested in you," she raised her eyebrow, "like another blond I know."

The color red filled Blake's cheeks immediately, almost as if the words her friend had said was a trigger. Still, she managed to keep her tone composed as she said, "This isn't about that, Weiss."

"Really, then what is this about?" she accused, cocking her head upwards confidently.

Blake gritted her teeth, not wanting to take any of this lightly. "It's about treating her with respect she deserves." She was honestly surprised at herself, surprised at how calm she sounded, especially considering the fiery, burning, exploding feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"I only met her today," Weiss stated matter-of-factly. "What makes you think I'll respect her?"

"Because she's different." Blake bit her lip as soon as the words left her mouth.

"How so?" came the question, the question which she couldn't escape from. A question she knew she must answer truthfully.

"She's…" the girl trailed off, wanting to speak her thoughts as subtly as she could, searching of the choice of words she should use. "Yang's just like you, Weiss. She… comes from the same place as you."

Weiss paled. "No, she's not." Slowly, yet darkly, she shook her head. "She's not like me at all."

"What do you…" she said, but her words faded away as she realized how much her voice was shaking. She breathed out before repeating, "What do you mean?"

The white-haired girl looked down on the sink, frowning in deep concern. "Her aura, her… soul, it's not human but it feels… different…"

"How so?" Blake pried.

"Us…" Weiss' eyes squinted for a brief moment before she explained, "Us demons can feel auras. It exists without a form. We can feel each aura of every living being. And Yang's aura… It isn't something that I've felt before."

The raven-haired girl was a little disturbed by this fact, but she wasn't going to give in with her argument. "So? Just because she's different doesn't mean she's bad."

"No, Blake, you don't get it!" Weiss snapped. "It's not her aura that's different! It's her that's different!"

She took a deep breath. "Look, it's extremely rare for our kind to travel into your world, much less live in it. And, to think that Yang is still sixteen… There is a reason why she wants to come here, Blake. And from what I can tell, she's not like me."

"Like you?" Blake could feel the entirety of her body shaking, but that didn't stop her from asking more questions, from wanting more answers.

The shorter girl gritted her teeth. "A… Huntress, a protector, if you will. Someone who dedicated themselves to fighting demons who caused any kind of mayhem in the human society. Officially, a demon could become a huntress when she'd turned twenty one. But, since I am a Schnee, I get to be a huntress at a very young age."

Blake looked down, thinking. After a while, she asked a much simpler, yet more personal question. "Does Ruby know?"

The girl's lips formed into the ghost of a smile. "The fact that I'm a demon? No. The fact that I love my job, yes."

Amber eyes widen, understanding the indication of her words. "So, business is actually…"

Blake didn't have a continue. A nod from the other girl was more than enough to answer her question.

But then, she frowned and said, "How could you not tell Ruby about any of this… After all this time…"

The heiress narrowed her eyes and lowered her head. "I did want to, one time… but she told me that she doesn't need to know everything about me to trust me. That's what I… That's what I like about her."

Blake could only smirk and comment, "Sure… 'like'… nothing more."

Icy blue eyes glared at her instantly, but her smirk only turned wider seeing the blush on her white cheeks.

Weiss crossed her arms and sighed, dropping the issue. "Blake," she said, her voice regaining it's logical tone once more. "You're my friend. Despite that we never talked with each other that many times, I still care about you." Her face softened. "So whatever you do, please, _please_ , stay _away_ from that girl. She is bad news."

Blake bit her lip. "Weiss, I-"

"Who do you trust more? Her, or me?"

"Weiss…"

The petite girl sighed, Blake couldn't tell if it was because of disappointment or irritation, possibly both. As she walked through the dark-haired girl and grabbed the door-handle, she said, "Just be careful, Blake. Yang isn't what she seems. She came here for a reason. And I know it's not because of a good reason."

* * *

 **Author's Notes : BOOM! Finally got my laptop back… thank goodness the file is saved… otherwise… I would not have a grand time.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm sorry if it's not as good as my other chapters. This week has been filled with exams, so I am _very_ tired. But I promise you, the next chapter is going to be... well... I won't say _great_ , but I did have a lot of fun writing it... so, it should be good, right?**

 **Have a good day~!**


	8. Comforts in Many Forms

Blake ran with no destination in mind.

She did it because it was the only thing she knew how to do.

She poured every last ounce of energy that she had to do just that, yet, it still wasn't enough.

She was running.

But that didn't always mean that she was moving forward.

Everything was pure, harrowing black.

Everything was nothing.

But she kept running.

She gasped and opened her mouth. She tried to scream, to call out for someone, anyone, but no sound would ever come out of her mouth.

She was pathetic.

She always told herself that she didn't need any help.

She always told herself that she didn't want any help.

… Now that she knew it was untrue, her own mouth had betrayed her.

It was as if she was forbidden to speak.

A horrifying scream of rage came from behind her. A scream that would put monsters' to shame.

She told herself not to look back, to never look back again.

But that scream only made her do just that.

… It was him, the demon, looking at her with those painfully familiar mad eyes and devastating smirk on his lips.

Her body froze.

Her mind screamed at her own body to keep running, yet, her fingers couldn't twitch, not even a single bit.

Watching was the only thing she could do as he outstretched his arm, reaching out for her, his smirk morphing into a wide smile-

* * *

Blake gasped for the one and only thing she knew would keep her alive. Air.

She feared that someone would steal away all the oxygen from her as she took short, fast breaths, resulting to a pounding pain in her chest.

Her amber eyes darted aimlessly around the dark room.

Only the moon from above served as a light source, and it wasn't an effectively good one.

The girl could barely make out the objects in her own room, the room she'd been dwelling in for years.

Her mind drifted back into the nightmare she'd endured despite her protest. Soon, she could see the monster in a mask of a living being again, standing in the far corner, staring at her with those dark eyes, his teeth glowing as he smiled, waiting for her to wake up before he could finally take her away-

"No!" she rasped. Her voice was raw, yet soft. Emotions were flooding from it, yet, it was only as loud as a whisper.

Blake supposed it reflected her own existence. Her pleas were simply too quiet for anyone to hear.

It made her feel nauseous. Both her nightmare and her current imagination.

Slowly, she shook her head, refusing with all her might to let that demon invade her mind once more. She simply couldn't handle another nightmare.

She, instead, tried to focus on her current condition. Her face was wet from sweat. But she soon realised that it was not just sweat, but tears as well. Her hands were trembling without her control, and she briefly wondered why she hadn't notice it earlier before.

She gripped on her own two hands in an attempt to stop herself from shaking so much. She took a deep, long, yet shaky breaths.

 _'Calm down,'_ her mind told.

And in minutes that felt like hours, she only felt a little better. Her hands had reduced their shaking, but it still was shaking, even if only slightly.

She sniffled, burying her face into her pillow, muting her tears.

She wasn't fine, but she was in a far better condition than when she had woke up.

 _KNOCK! KNOCK!_

She flinched at the sound, startled. But that startled feeling changed into fear and cautiousness in a matter of seconds.

' _Who would be awake at this,'_ she wanted to ask herself rhetorically, before frowning and literally asking, _'wait, what time is it?'_

Quickly, she searched for her phone. It was located on the drawer right next to her bed, so, fortunately for Blake, she didn't even have to stand up to go and grab it with her still-slightly-shaking hands.

Her eyes squinted instantly when it was greeted with the unexpected brightness from her phone.

Her jaw clenched in nervousness when finding out that it was 00:23 in the morning.

' _So late… or, early, I suppose,'_ she thought.

"Blake?"

The voice was gentle and raspy, clearly sleepy. It could only belong to Yang Branwen.

"May I come in?"

Chivalry was present in the blonde's nature, as always, even while the blonde only embraced it when she was only with Blake.

' _Perhaps she knows how much I like it,'_ Blake wondered, but only briefly.

She quickly touched her cheek, just below her right eye, and feel her own tears. She hadn't even looked at herself in the mirror, but she knew how much of a mess she was right now.

So, the dark-haired girl hesitated. ' _What will she think if she sees me like this?'_ she thought, looking down at her trembling hands.

She trusted the blonde, more so than she'd admit, but she still wasn't ready for Yang to see her in this state. Heck, she wasn't even ready for Ruby, or even her parents to see her in this state.

"Blake?" the voice called again with a hint of concern.

Blake decided to lower her head, letting her bangs cover her eyes, hoping it would cover her bloodshot eyes. "Come in," she choked out.

She could faintly see the yellow light that was previously blocked by the door. It was slowly, gently opened. She knew Yang did it in a way that wouldn't frighten her even more. But it did little in easing Blake's troubled heart.

"Hey," the demon's voice greeted her. Gentle and soft.

Her eyes slowly untensed themselves from hearing her voice.

' _It's only Yang,'_ she told herself, knowing it would soothe her aching chest.

Blake didn't even dare to look away from the dull gray blankets. It wasn't that she find it interesting, she was just to petrified for the blonde to see her eyes, her glazed, teary eyes.

Blake swallowed before asking, her tone failing to hide her true feelings, "What do you want?"

"Right now?" The demon paused. "Making sure you're okay."

The human frowned. Slowly, she looked up. Hopefully, with the amount of light that shone into her room and her hair covering half of her face, Yang wouldn't be able to see her clearly, clearly enough to notice her undoubtedly pale face.

Her vision was a little blurry due to her tears, but even so, she could see that Yang was wearing a simple yellow tank-top and shorts despite it being a cold night. Even with the dim light Blake could see her well-built body and the small, yet visible muscles throughout her entire arm. Her gold mane was even messier and tangled than usual, yet the demon had managed to make it look as if it was intentional, as if it was some kind of fashion statement.

The blonde was leaning against the closed door, crossing her arms, showing genuine concern through nothing but her eyes.

"What do you mean?" Blake asked, hoping she wouldn't notice the quiver in her voice, "I'm not sick."

The blonde shook her head and rose from the wooden door, letting her legs support her weight. "Well, not _that_ kind of okay..." she uncrossed her arms, her right hand rubbing her neck as she shyly said, "the wall is kinda thin, and… I can hear everything..."

The dark-haired girl looked blankly at the demon, then she blinked a couple times, and slowly, yet noticeably, her eyes widened at the girl's implications. "Did I…"

"Scream like you're gonna die?" Yang finished off before chuckling unhappily. "Yeah," she confirmed.

The blonde took small steps forward, respecting Blake's personal space. "I hear your parents talked about it this morning too, about your nightmares, I mean. They're worried." Yang's eyes drifted from the girl and onto the side, wherever that may be. She added in a murmur with a hint of red in her cheeks, "I am too."

The blonde looked around her room. Despite her not being able to see anything, Yang silently nodded. "Wow, your father's friends are really quick in cleaning up your room again," she complimented.

Blake blinked before answering, "Yeah, they…" She paused, not expecting the sudden change in subject. She could feel her the tenseness in her body melting away. "Dad told them to fix my room when we were at school. That way, we didn't have to wait for them to finish." The girl shrugged weakly. "They only managed to clean most of the shards and pieces. They weren't able to save some of my belongings."

Yang cringed. "Sorry."

Blake held back a chuckle, and instead, smiled warmly at her. "Don't be," she argued. "You saved my life."

The demon flashed her a wide smile, before her face turned completely neutral. "But that's not why I'm here," she declared stoically, leaving no room for debates.

Blake flinched and looked down once again. ' _No,'_ she repeated in her head, hugging her knees and burying her face in them.

"Wanna talk about it?" suggested Yang, who definitely noticed her reaction based on the tone she was using.

But Blake refused to move nor speak. She didn't want to look at the blonde only to find those lilac eyes that were filled with so much worry, worry for her.

"It's okay if you don't want to."

The voice was still soft as it was before, but there was something more. The girl's eyes narrowed, usually people would ask her to tell them what her problem was, but for Yang…

She just genuinely wanted to make sure that Blake was alright.

Blake shook her head hesitantly.

"Alright," came the answer from the younger girl, "do you want me to leave?"

She shook her head again, albeit faster this time.

"Okay then," said the blonde after she chuckled shyly.

The human finally gathered all the willpower she had to look up at the demon again. Yang still created some distance, awkwardly putting her hands to her pocket, looking at her with those unforgettable lilac eyes and small, yet bright smile.

Blake had realised earlier that while worry did fill the demon's eyes, there was also something more, something different. Now that the human finally got a good look at the blonde, she realised that something was compassion and understanding.

She sighed internally as she scooted over to the side of the bed, signalling Yang to sit. So, with her lilac eyes never leaving Blake, the blonde sat cross-legged, facing the girl directly.

Unintentionally, Blake started playing with a strand of her hair. She wasn't a talkative person, so she didn't know where to start.

Blake briefly looked at the woman in front of her, and caught a glimpse of the demon, who was staring at her with no indication that she was in a rush, not like other people. She simply stayed there, her mouth clenched shut and her eyes didn't look anywhere else but Blake. Yang was waiting for her, waiting for her to talk. It gave off the impression that she would gladly be awake up all night waiting, and knowing who she was, she probably would.

The girl's mouth opened, and her eyebrows knitted together in focus, trying to find the right words. When she was ready, Blake looked up, and found that same sight of the blonde, only now with a small smile on her lips.

"Have you ever had nightmares?" Blake decided to ask, but instantly realised how vague and confusing that sentence might've been.

Yang's eyes narrowed, and her lips tightened themselves. Even when they've only known each other for a few days Blake could already read her like a book. She could tell that the blonde was thinking hardly.

Then, she said, her voice raspier and deeper than usual, devoid of any cheerfulness or confidence she would always display in public, "More than I'll admit."

Amber eyes widened, shocked to even believe Yang would say those kinds of words. Her mouth opened itself when she saw what was covered underneath those pools of lilac. Wisdom, emptiness, and grief.

Blake didn't like what she was seeing.

The human took another deep breath. "How do you deal with it?"

Yang closed her eyes, sighing, before opening them again and answered, "You accept that it really could happen to you," she smiled passively, "anything's possible, we live in a big complicated world," her face hardened, but her smile never faded, "which is why we should appreciate what we have, no matter how small it might be." The last part of her sentence sounded bitter, which Blake could never took lightly.

Blake felt as if she was talking to a different person right now, yet, she knew she was talking to Yang. The softness and warmth in the blonde's words were still there, soothing her. Yet, those words she'd said, and the implication behind it.

' _Is this who you really are?'_ Blake asked with a soft gasp.

The human, yet again, took a deep breath. "How do you get rid of them?" came the third question.

The blonde shrugged. "You can't," she simply said, her tone becoming darker as she continued, "no matter how much you want to."

It was a warning from someone who'd experienced that same dilema.

' _It's not fair,'_ Blake's heart roared as she frowned, looking at the girl and reminding herself that Yang was younger than her. _'She's still a kid!'_ Her frown deepened at that thought.

Suddenly, the blonde added in a soft murmur, "You can't forget about it either."

The dark-haired girl looked at her companion, and realised that she wasn't the only one who had problems. She realised that Yang needed someone to talk to, and that someone would hopefully be her.

"...What are they about?" Blake whispered in a soothing manner.

The human expected her to look at her with confusion, asking her to elaborate the meaning of her words. But instead, the demon leaned backwards, lengthening the distance between them and replied, "This isn't about me."

Blake frowned. "It is now."

The blonde clenched her fist, whether she realised it or not, and looked away. "Blake, please, you don't understand, you shouldn't care about me," she stated. Her tone was hard, yet, wavering, as if it was something she must say, even if it pained her. "Nobody should care about me." She was in the verge of tears.

"Yang…" The human put her hand on Yang's shoulder, gently tracing her fingers over it. She hoped the action would bring some sense of ease towards the demon.

The blonde looked back at her, her eyes glassy.

Blake smiled at her. "I can't stop caring about you," she said, "I've tried, but you're just too much of a good person for me to stop caring about."

Yang, in response, looked down.

The human put her other hand on her cheek, similar to what the demon had done a few days ago to make her not worry so much. Blake could only hope if what she was doing now had the same effect.

"I care about you, Yang."

Her eyes still not meeting Blake's, the demon responded sunkenly, "Somehow I doubt you're not lying."

The dark-haired girl intended to roll her eyes and cross her arms dramatically, knowing it would brightened up the girl's moods. "Why would I even do something like that?"

It did. Yang finally laughed. It wasn't a loud one, but it was better than no laughing at all.

The blonde finally looked at her, unshed tears still existed in her eyes, and her lips formed into a ghostly smile. "You're a really good person, you know that?" she said, her voice unusually soft, only louder than a whisper.

Blake didn't even realise what she was doing, not after it was too late. It was as if her instincts took over her own actions. Soon, she found herself shifting closer onto Yang, her hand holding the demon's tensed hand and gently rubbing it, saying, "Talk to me. Tell me. It'll be okay."

The younger girl sighed and grabbed Blake's hand, holding it firmly, but not tightly enough for it to cause some kind of pain. Yang leaned forwards, possibly for a sense of comfort, and now, their faces were only a few inches apart.

Blake tried her best not to freak out over this. She _was_ used of all sorts of closeness with another person, being friends with Ruby made her become used to it.

But this type of… gesture. She couldn't help but notice, and enjoy, the sight of the tiny freckles visible on the girl's upper cheeks, and the dark violet eyes, who simply looked exhausted, yet it was somehow still magnificent, and finally, those lips that could-

' _No,'_ Blake told herself, ' _Focus, Blake.'_

Thankfully, the blonde cocked her head downwards, making Blake unable to see her face.

The demon started fidgeting. "The reason why I came, Blake…" she said, then shook her head. "I lied," she confessed, "it wasn't only because I wanted to have fun, or find out more about this world…" she exhaled, "no…"

Yang's head rose, finally making eye-contact again. The light in her eyes were dim, dimmer than it should've been.

Blake's grip on Yang's hand hardened.

"I came here looking for my father…"

Amber eyes narrowed, waiting for her to continue.

"...my human father."

Blake forgot how to breathe.

She released her grip while her jaw dropped. She tried forming sentences, but her mouth wouldn't even move and no noise came out of her threat. She was too shocked to speak in a literal sense.

Seeing Blake's reaction, the blonde laughed. It wasn't even close to a happy laugh. Instead, it was a bitter one. "What a surprise, right? Turns out my mother's a demon and my father's a human. That makes me… well, odd." The last word was said in a haunting, maddening way.

Yang looked at Blake with a neutral expression, her eyes were no longer the gentle lilac. Instead, it was a dark blood red. "Do you still want me to live with you _now_?" She grinned. "Do you still care about me? Or do you see me as nothing more than a freak."

It shocked Blake to hear those words to come out of the blonde's mouth. But what shocked her even more was how calmly those words are being said. She had a feeling that this wasn't the first time Yang said those words.

The human forced herself to answer, "No," dismissing the fact that her voice was only a whisper. She knew Yang heard her.

"Really Blake?" Yang's tone of voice was becoming more and more unstable, and her eyes were starting to change into a brighter tone of red, making the human flinch in fear. "I'm a disgrace, am I? I shouldn't be proud of myself, I shouldn't be loved, I shouldn't even life, I shouldn't-"

"Yang."

Blake grabbed her wrist, looking at her intently. She was scared of Yang, that was no doubt, but she knew that this was the same blonde who'd saved her life countless times, so she had nothing to be afraid of.

The demon's skin was radiating heat, but the girl didn't recoil. She made sure her eyes were locked onto each other as she said, "I don't care what you are. I never will. To me, you're still Yang."

The younger girl whined, "But-"

"No buts," the older girl said before she could continue.

Yang's eyes started to change again. It wasn't her normal lilac eyes, but at least it wasn't the glowing bright crimson red eyes. Now, it was simply blood red.

"Sorry…" the demon muttered, "I shouldn't've said those things."

"No, it's okay," Blake replied. Yang didn't seem too convinced, so she added, "it's okay to be honest about how you feel. It's not healthy for you to bottle up these feelings instead of talking to someone about it."

"Thanks…" deep red eyes were sparkling. "I needed that."

"Don't mention it," Blake said with a shrug and a smile.

She let go of her grip on the blonde's shoulder, and simply looked at her. She did what Yang had done earlier. She waited for the other girl to gather her thoughts.

To the girl's surprise, it didn't take such a long time for the blonde to finally voice her thoughts. "It's crazy, I mean, I never found out about it until recently, two weeks ago, actually. It explains a lot of things, really. Like how weaker I am compared to other demons, and how unusually tired I get everytime I use my semblance- err, powers," she explained.

Yang swallowed before continuing. "My uncle told me that my mother, apparently, fell in love with a human when she was in this world. How weird is that?" she sneered, "considering how she _left_ me when I was a baby."

"Yang... " Blake could only muster out. She truly wanted to say many things to her, but the blonde didn't listen, she just continued talking.

"When I found out about it, I knew I had to find him. But… what if he doesn't believe that I'm his daughter? What if he hates me? Heck," she threw her hands out, "he probably doesn't even know that I exist!" her eyes were glowing again.

"Yang," Blake tried to say, but her mouth failed her.

"And now I'm just a burden to everyone. You're stuck here, with me, and I haven't got a single clue as to where my father is! Maybe he's in the other side of the world for all I know! Maybe he's dead! Maybe this is all pointless!"

"Yang!" the human finally screamed.

Said blonde was breathing uncontrollably and raggedly from her mouth. Her eyes were burning crimson once more, but this time, it was out of frustration and dissapointment rather than anger.

Blake made sure her voice was levelled and calm when she said, "We will find your dad."

"We?..." the blonde repeated, her shoulders lowering itself. The fire in her eyes were dying down as well, even if the red never left them.

"Yes." Blake didn't hesitate. She didn't even blink. "Yang, listen to me. Don't you dare think that you're a burden, nor a freak. You've been nothing but kind to me, and to everyone. You don't deserve to be given hate. So don't let anyone hate you, and especially, don't hate yourself."

As soon as the words left her mouth, the human felt a wave of de ja vu, feeling, knowing, that this had happened before, but couldn't pin down when or where.

Before she could even react, Yang threw herself into Blake, burying her face into the girl's collar.

"Blake," the name was said in such a dreadful way, it sent shiver down the girl's spine. "Please don't leave me… I can't stand anyone leaving me again…"

"I won't…" The dark-haired girl had no idea what she was saying, but she hoped it calmed the blonde down. "Of course I won't."

"Please… Please…" the demon kept saying, the word never failing to show her desperation and the unease she tried to bury and forget.

"I won't leave you… I promise… Never in my life," Blake kept saying in every way possible, trying to soothe the blonde.

They stayed like that for what felt like hours, but in reality, was only minutes. Blake ran her fingers down the blonde's mane of hair as she said sweet nothings in her ear.

During those times, Blake started to piece together some of the blonde's unusual behaviors. The way she always shrunk away from the topic of parenting and caring.

' _She's just confused and scared…'_

At this moment, the girl forgot that the woman in her hold was a hybrid between two creatures who had incredible powers from another world.

No, who Yang was at this moment… she was simply a teenager, a kid. Just like Blake herself.

A kid who still didn't understand why her mother left her when she was an infant. A kid who always yearned for affection, but could never get it. A kid who simply wanted a family.

A kid.

Nothing more. Nothing less.

Slowly, the blonde let go of her. Once she did, Blake immediately noted that her eyes were back onto their usual healthy lilac orbs. It calmed the girl, knowing that Yang was at least

she told her, "Thank you, Blake… Thank you for everything."

"It's the least I could do," the girl answered with a smile that came natural on her lips.

All of a sudden, Yang grinned mischiveously. "I know I've made this promise once, but I'll make it again!" she said, regaining her usual cheerful aura.

She grabbed Blake's hand, pulled it towards her chest.

"I promise, Blake, I won't let anything bad happen to you. I'll protect you with my life. If anyone's gonna hurt you, they'll have to go through me first. I'll gladly die for you, Blake Belladonna."

She grinned toothily despite what she'd just say.

"Yang…" Blake said, looking at her with, obviously, wide eyes. "W-why would you say that? I-it's dangerous and-"

"Too late!" the demon cheered, her grin never leaving her face. "Now I have to protect you! And no take backs!" she said, doing a finger-gun with her other hand, while Blake simply slapped her forehead in utter disbelief.

"This girl…" this time, Blake actually said it in real life.

An uninvited yawn slipped through the raven-haired girl's mouth.

"Oh, right, you humans need to rest," Yang said, emphatizing the 'human' part while smirking.

"Don't you?" Blake countered, reminding both of them that the demon wasn't fully a demon.

"Well, us demons need rest too, but," the blonde herself yawned, and frowned at the sight of the smirking human. "Ugh, yeah, actually, I'm pretty tired," she said while pouting, giving up on trying to act invincible.

"Well, go to bed then," Blake said, despite smiling.

Then, Yang did the unexpected.

She pulled the girl's hand upwards, onto her mouth, and she kissed it. A small blush could be seen in Yang's cheeks as she did it, but it was nothing compared to Blake's face, which would put tomatoes to shame.

"Goodnight, Blake," Yang answered, smiling genuinely.

"G-goodnight," she replied hastily, stunned.

Neither of them moved. They both stared at each other.

"I… should probably leave, shouldn't I?" Yang asked after a not-long-enough time.

"No," Blake quickly said, thinking that her bed was large enough for the two of them.

"What?"

"I mean yes," Blake retreated.

' _Crap, why did I say that?'_ she asked herself, cringing at the sight of lilac eyes narrowing down.

But fortunately, or unfortunately, Yang smirked. "Okay then," she simply said, standing up.

"Goodnight, Blake," she said again.

"Goodnight," Blake responded, despite knowing that they'd said this to each other literally seconds ago.

The blonde slowly walked towards the door. She gripped the door handle and looked back at Blake, smiling knowingly. "I really would die for you, you know that, right?"

"I probably would too," Blake said, a little too honest.

Yang smiled at the girl's response.

"Bye Blake," Yang said.

Blake opened her mouth, wanting to tell the girl not to leave her and to stay with her, before realising how embarrassing that sounded. "Bye," she ended up saying.

"Sleep well." The door closed.

For a few minutes, the raven-haired girl did nothing but stare at the door, her mind all over the place.

A yawn was what snapped her back to reality.

That was when she realised that she truly needed sleep if she wanted to be able to focus at school tomorrow.

She layed down on her bed, facing the ceiling. Her eyelids dropped itself not long after. And soon, she was in the world of slumber.

And for the first time in such a long time, Blake truly did sleep well.

* * *

The bell rang.

Lots of students literally jumped out of their seat and went out of class, not caring the slightest about their assignments nor their teacher's look of betrayal.

Blake sighed in relief, finding that teenager's reactions towards a simple lunch time to be very unnecessary, even while she herself couldn't wait to finally dig in.

She tilted her head towards the side, looking at the now empty room, and found that the only occupants -excluding herself- were Ruby, Weiss, and Yang.

The black-haired girl blinked at surprise, seeing how the heiress. Or, more specifically, how she nervously was fidgeting. It was a sight as rare as seeing extinct animals.

The girl slowed her walking pace, knowing that if Weiss, of all people, was nervous about something, it would mean something big.

Yang followed her from behind, like a puppy following it's owner. She didn't know what was about to happen, as opposed to the dark-clothed girl, of course.

Amber eyes glued themselves towards the exit, although she couldn't help but notice the distant whispers, whispers that must've belonged to Weiss and Ruby.

Blake's eyebrow raised in finding out that Ruby also had something to do with this; whatever this was.

Just when the raven-haired teenager was about to grab the door handle, a very fake and loud cough that belonged to the brunette was heard.

Blake slowly turned around, facing the red and white duo with a fake expression of utter confusion on her face, looking as if she didn't know why she nor Yang shouldn't leave.

Yang did so as well, only she wasn't faking her look of confusion.

Ruby whispered angrily into the heiress' ears. Weiss complaint in a whisper as well. They argued in soft, muted voices that couldn't be heard by the two other girls, before, finally, the white-haired girl sighed, gained her composure, and looked up.

Blake's eyes widened at the sight. Not the sight of light blue eyes meeting her eyes, but the sight of them meeting lilac eyes.

Ruby chuckled anxiously from behind. "Weiss has something to say to you, Yang."

"Really?" Blake asked in a very subtle sarcasm that only the heiress would notice.

The white-haired girl flinched and bit her lip. It took her awhile before she finally gathered the courage to say, "Yes, I do…" Her tone was so unlike usual. It was uncertain, perplexed, ansty, and most importantly, it truly was a rare sight to behold.

Blake decided to look back at her demon and found that she herself was nervous, fidgeting and looking down, as if she would be punished.

"Hey Blake, could you maybe please come with me for a sec?" Ruby suddenly said, walking towards the mentioned girl.

The dark-haired girl opened her mouth, wanting to decline her offer, but the brunette quickly put her index finger on her lips and begged, "Trust me."

Blake sighed. "Fine," was the only thing she needed to say in order for the young girl to drag her out of the classroom, leaving the two demons alone.

After she closed the door, Blake quickly lowered her head and put her head right next to it, attempting to hear what the heiress was finally going to say.

Ruby was next to her, although she appeared to be calmer than the older girl, leaning onto the wall, putting her hands on her pocket.

Blake heard a sigh coming from inside the door.

"Alright, now that those humans are gone, we can finally talk more freely," she heard the heiress mutter.

Blake briefly glanced at girl with reddish brown hair, wondering if she heard those words, but, much to her relief, Ruby wasn't listening. She was merely waiting, ever so patiently.

"So, are you gonna start asking some questions?" Yang's echoed voice came.

There was silence for a few agonizingly long seconds.

"No… I… want to apologise for… some of my behaviour yesterday."

 _'Some?'_ Blake's angry mind repeated, her eyes narrowing defensively even if the person she was angry at couldn't see her.

"She truly is sorry," Ruby suddenly said, looking at her pessimistically, as if she knew that the dark-haired girl would never believe her words.

The older girl looked at her solemnly before breaking eye-contact, looking at the door, lying quietly, "I know."

But the young girl could see through her mask and right onto her lies.

"I asked her about it yesterday -asked why she was… well, ruder than usual," the girl started to explain, looking down, remembering. The dark-haired girl started to put some distance between her head and the wooden object, intending to listen to the girl's words. "She's just scared, Blake, that's all. She didn't mean what she said."

The booklover sighed, looking down again, when she started hearing voices from the other side of the door again.

"Alright, all of my behaviour," Weiss' voice echoed. "It was very unnecessary, and, if Blake and Ruby trusts you… then, I should too… I'm… sorry."

 _'That's enough,'_ Blake told herself, easing her curiosity, finally standing properly.

She drew in a shaky breath before saying, "I believe you… I really do, this time."

A small chuckle slipped past the young girl's lips. "I know you will, Blake."

The atmosphere became lighter, less tense.

"Honestly, I am impressed," the raven-haired girl said, smiling knowingly at the younger girl, who flinched in response and touched her two index fingers bashfully.

The brunette replied while looking away, "What do you mean?" not wanting to admit her role in this entire event.

Blake knew it was a waste of time to try and explain the truth in which Ruby would never admit, so, instead, she chose to say, "What did you tell Weiss to get her to apologise?"

The red-hooded girl shrugged in response, so she elaborated, "I mean, it's very impressive to get the Ice Queen of all people to say sorry." She chuckled. "You must mean so much to her."

"Well, I don't know about that," Ruby quickly replied, trying her best to hide her fluster. "I just, you know, tell her how super duper awesome Yang is."

The black-haired girl frowned, "But, I am wondering, you don't know Yang that much, why do you care so much about her?"

Ruby smiled gently at her, knowingly. "What? Is it not okay to help out a friend?"

Blake's eyes widen at the meaning behind her question. "No, no," she said, waving her hand, "That's not what I-"

A giggle faded her words away. Silver eyes were filled with so much hope and faith; something the older girl had trouble finding.

"It's alright, Blake." The girl in red looked down, thinking. "Well, I guess it's because…" She frowned, shaking her head slowly. "I don't know really, I just feel like I had to."

The older girl narrowed her eyes, thinking. "So… you feel like she's a nice person, that's why you trust her?" she asked with a pair of widened eyes.

"Yeah," the young girl replied too easily. "I mean, what other reason is there to trust her? If she's nice to you, then, she doesn't want to hurt you."

Blake looked up, her puzzled amber eyes finding silver yet again.

Ruby smiled. "I know you don't wanna get hurt, I don't wanna get hurt too. But, I don't think that should stop us from believing in someone."

The black-haired girl looked away, feeling guilty.

"Hey, hey," the younger girl comforted, "it's okay if you're not ready. Just-"

The door quickly opened to reveal two of their demon friends, one smiling happily and the other wearing her neutrally frowning expression.

Weiss looked at the two dark-haired duo and her frown deepened instantly. "What are you doing?"

"I, um-" Ruby stammered, finally back at her old self again. "We were just back, from, uh… doing our stuff!"

The white-haired girl looked at Blake with narrowed blue eyes.

"Library," she said, faking her calm attitude. "We were going to read there, but Ruby forgot her library card."

"Hey!" Ruby yelled defensively.

The heiress muttered, shaking her head, "I should've known," before dragging Ruby away.

"Wha-? Weiss, where are we going?!" the young brunette wailed even when she didn't make any efforts to stop the older girl.

"The library," the heiress replied. "You should've told me you wanted to read new books."

As they became more and more distant, Blake heard Ruby mutter, "But I actually don't have a library card."

And the last thing the dark-haired girl heard before the two lovebirds were finally gone was; "That's why we need to make you one."

Suddenly, a chuckle was heard. Blake turned towards the source of the voice and realised that it belonged to Yang.

"So, what were you two doing?" the blonde asked.

Blake looked away as she answered, "Nothing you should care about." She waited a couple of seconds to pass before she asked, "What did she say to you?" despite knowing bits of their conversation.

"Meh," Yang shrugged, "nothing much, she just said she's sorry."

After thinking, the dark-haired girl asked another question. "Did you tell her about you being… part human?"

Lilac eyes narrowed. "I wanted to, but she told me that she didn't want to know."

"Really?" Blake asked, knowing that a certain brunette might had some influence on that particular statement.

"Yeah! So, we're good now, basically," the yellow-haired girl concluded with a grin.

"Glad to hear that," the older girl sighed before she finally started walking again, wanting to fill her stomach with food.

 _'Everything's over… right?'_ she asked.

"Hey, Blake?" the blonde said, walking right besides her, following her.

"Yeah?" she answered simply.

"Thanks for worrying about me," the demon said, looking down. "But, I really am okay, you know that, right?"

Amber eyes widen.

Everything about Yang's body language contradicted her words.

"Of… of course," she lied, her previous question answered.

It -whatever that may be- wasn't over.

* * *

 **Author's Notes : Alright, so, first of all, I would like to give a big shoutout to NightFlare! You've always been supportive of my work, and, I guess I'm kinda sorry that I only started mentioning you now, but, please make an actual account so I can reply to you in person! I feel like this isn't enough.**

 **Secondly, LastOrder, your prediction was correct. I have no idea how to reply to you then, before this chapter was released, I mean. But now I can!**

 **Thirdly, BMAN92 asked if I was ever going to continue Head Over Heels, my very first story (oneshots excluded) and, to answer his question, I am still… uncertain. I probably won't continue that work, not in a long time, at least.**

 **And lastly, this goes for all of you. Have a good day!... That's it… Just, have a nice day.**


	9. Another Shocking Friday

Tucked in her bed, surrounded by comfort in the form of books, pillows, and a cup of tea, was Blake. The only noise filling the room was the occasional sound of the flipping pages and static-like raindrops.

This was her way of having fun and spending her time, especially when it was a Friday evening, meaning that she was free from the unnecessarily painful responsibility that was homework.

She spent an extra time yesterday finishing almost all of her assignments just so she could truly relax today.

' _Today's going to be nothing but relaxing,'_ she told herself as she scooted over to her side, leaning towards the wall, never looking away from her novel.

She took a deep breath, the nice aroma of her warm tea filling her nose. She let out a breath of consent. A breath of satisfaction.

' _Yup,'_ she agreed to herself. ' _No stress.'_

It truly was such a wonderfully peaceful evening, that was, until she could hear her mother calling her and Yang screaming, "Dinner time!"

The teen frowned. Her eyes quickly darted towards her phone as she turned it on, revealing the digital time that read 18:34.

' _Ugh,'_ she internally moaned in anything but joy, only now realising that time flew so fast when she was reading.

"Girls?!" came the questioning yell that was blocked out by the harsh rain.

Quickly standing up with a grunt of annoyment, the dark-haired girl replied to her mother by yelling back, "In a minute!"

She did a quick stretch, relieved to hear a few popping sounds from all over her body, and rub her forehead before going towards the blonde's door.

She knocked and shouted, "Yang, come down, it's dinner."

But there was no response. There wasn't even any sound safe for the raindrops.

"Yang?" she asked in a louder volume, her ear subconsciously leaning closer towards the wooden frame.

No 'hold on.' No 'I'll catch up.'

There was no sign of movement based on all the noise her ear picked up.

Her eyebrows furrowed, already sensing that there was something wrong. The blonde made no announcement that she was going out today. And even if she did, she should be home exactly one hour ago. Her mother had _very_ strict rules about it.

The feeling of worry and anxiousness started to grow in the pit of her stomach. After contemplating for a short time, Blake decided that she should open the door regardless of what she was going to see.

She mentally prepared herself for what she was going to see. Empty room, unclothed Yang; every scenario she could think of.

What she hoped was to see nothing but a snoring half-demon. But what she did end up seeing wasn't something she was even remotely prepared for.

In what was now Yang's room, with the lights turned off, lay the only occupant.

Her entire body was soaking wet, as if she was made out of liquid. And, judging by the opened window, the blonde had been going outside without any of her housemate's knowledge.

But that wasn't what feared Blake.

What feared Blake was the many cuts and bruises that spreaded all over Yang's body, along with how shallow her breathing was, as if she had to force the air into her mouth and force it out again.

Blake gave out a gasp of terror, one that went unnoticed by anyone else, silenced by the rain.

"Yang!"

In a blink of an eye, the older girl was already on top of the barely conscious blonde, holding her cheeks shakily yet gently, worried that she might hurt the demon who had been in pain all this time without her notice.

"Y-Yang? Oh my gosh, what happened!? Can you hear me!?" she half-pleaded half-yelled, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

The more Blake looked at her, the more her mind began to panic. All she could see were blue and purple; the color of Yang's bruises, and red; the color of her blood.

Weakly, with her mind still in a haze and her mouth still trembling, the girl stood up.

When she was about to scream out her mother's name to call for help she felt a soft and weak touch on her hand.

"Don't…" came a whisper from below her.

Slowly, amber eyes drifted down, only to find tired, yet comforting lilac staring up at her.

Even in her injured state, the demon managed to give Blake a smile. A messy, bloody, weak smile. But a smile nonetheless.

"But, Yang, you're…" Blake's words died off, seeing the way the blond-haired girl shook her head.

"Please… I just need… time…" the blonde croaked out.

It was obvious that even talking required a great amount of energy for the blonde, judging by how much more struggling it took her to simply take breaths afterwards.

It was another reason why Blake should be calling out for help.

Keyword; should.

Amber met lilac. Unlike her body, Yang's eyes were filled with so much emotions. It was as if they were talking to her. They asked her, pleaded her, not to do the logical action.

The two teens had a staring contest of some kind. And, eventually, the winner was the girl caked with pain, simply because of the way Blake groaned out loud.

"I hope you know how much you're killing me, Yang."

Yang gave her a tender smile. "Thanks, Blake."

And for a moment, it did lift up the dark teen's spirit. But that mood disappeared instantly when the demon started coughing in pain.

"Who did this to you?" Blake couldn't help but ask.

Yang tried to mask her pain by giving her a grin. "Don't worry," she said, her voice raspy and unconvincing. "They're not worth your time."

The word 'they' alarmed Blake. To her, it meant that the one who did this to her was more than just one person.

' _There were several people... Several people hurting a 16 years old…'_ Blake's face turned grim at the thought, so much so that the blonde took the girl's hand.

"Hey, I'm alright," the demon tried to convince her.

Blake didn't listen to her, instead asking rhetorically, "How did you even end up being like…" she gestured with her hand, "this."

The blonde pouted and shrugged as if it was no big deal. "Well, my uncle did say I'm a trouble-creator."

"Trouble-maker," Blake corrected with a smirk.

"Yeah, that," the demon said with a frown, a sign which meant that she would heal.

That she would be okay.

For some reason, Blake started giggling. Maybe it was because of how crazy this all was. Maybe it was because of Yang's adorable pout. Whatever the reason might be, that reason made her laugh harder than normally.

The blonde followed her into laughter as well.

They stayed like that for a while, completely disregarding the harsh and unforgiving rain outside of their small comforting room and the blood leaking from Yang's entire body.

Their laughter started to die down as time passed. Soon, it was just them, staring at each other with a smile and a warm feeling in their chest.

"What will you do?" Blake asked, her smile beginning to fade. Yet Yang's smile didn't.

"Healing powers, remember?"

The human's mouth formed into an 'o' as she recollected the day they first met.

A warm and barely visible light started to form all around the demon's body. She appeared to be glowing, even if only slightly.

With her wide eyes, Blake inspected the wounds festering all around Yang. Slowly, they started to close, which meant that the demon really was healing.

A sigh went pass through the girl's lips. She'd been holding a long breath without even realising it.

As the blonde was healing herself, Blake asked, "Are you okay?" despite knowing the answer.

At first, the blonde gave a non-verbal words of 'are you serious?' through her face and the way her eyes darted around her own body.

But suddenly, as her lips formed a smirk, she coughed in the fakest way possible and put her hand on her heart dramatically. "Oh, no, My Lady, I'm dying… of fabulousness!"

Blake, who, at first, thought that the demon really was in a tremendous pain, was now as red as a tomato. The sight brought Yang into another fit of laughter.

"Why you…" The dark-haired girl quickly grabbed a pillow and smacked the mischevious demon with it.

"Ah! Why? Why must you betray me!?" the demon cried out in-between Blake's deadly attacks.

Blake kept continuing her rampage and only stopped when Yang started coughing for real. Only then did the dark-haired girl remember that the blonde was still in the process of healing.

She hissed apologetically. "Are you hurt?"

"Nope!" the blonde denied with her mouth almost forming a smile. Almost.

The girl gritted her teeth and finally asked, "What happened?"

"Blake," Yang said after giving out a long sigh, her voice dropping a few octaves and her tone more serious than the girl would've liked. "I told you, they're not worth your time."

"Yes they are," the human sputtered without giving a thought into her words. "They hurt you, Yang. They _are_ worth my time."

The blonde closed her eyes and sighed. When she opened them back, her two lilac eyes had a hint of a glowing red surrounding it, as if they were flaming.

"What can you actually do about it, Blake?" Yang was asking her. But it felt more like she was challenging her, making fun of her.

The usually cheerful and grinning demon had turned into something else. Something Blake didn't like.

"You know my dad's the chief. He can send them all in jail even without a trial." Blake hoped what she said was actually true, or, at least, that the blond-haired girl would believe her.

"No, Blake, it's not like that," Yang said after a sigh. "Look, you don't understand."

"Then make me," Blake cut her off, "please, Yang, I thought we agreed that there'd be no more secrets."

The blonde's hands started trembling. "I know, but, this is for your own safety!" she half-yelled with her quiet voice. Her face was beginning to lose it's color.

"I-if, if they ever find out, then, who knows what they'll do to you, Blake. I really care about you, Blake! I care about you more than I care about myself, I… I love you, Blake."

All Blake could feel was her heart. The pounding of it, and how weird it felt in her chest. It was calling out, trying to reach towards what was in front of her; a girl trying to hold back her tears in hopes that she won't make her worry.

Her mind was blank as she suddenly feel something on her lips. Something good.

She didn't know what it was, but, like a moth drawn to a light, she wanted more of it, more of this _heavenly_ sensation.

It took her much more time than it should to register that her eyes were closed. And she didn't plan to open it.

Every problem, every responsibility, every memory, everything, they disappeared from the girl's mind.

All she could think was how amazing this felt, why she couldn't've done it earlier, and when she should do it again.

It was as if her eyes, and mind, were only now opened; truly opened, and she learnt everything about everything.

But, much to her dismay, her lungs felt too empty, and her eyes instinctively opened only to see a pair of closed eyes.

That was when it hit her.

She was kissing Yang.

Her hands began to feel weak, but she forced them to grab the blonde's arms as gently as she could and push her back, ending the act.

The blonde's head drooped down. Her bangs covered her entire face. She was breathing so uncontrollably.

"Yang…" she breathed out, but couldn't say anything else, not knowing what she was supposed to say.

"Blake…" Lilac met gold. Yang still had tears in her eyes, but it wasn't the kind of tear like before. This was different.

"I think my dream finally came true."

She was crying with joy.

Blake pulled her into a hug, a bone-crushing hug that would probably break the demon's bones. Not that she cared.

And, much to her delight, the blonde embraced back, although not as strong as hers, possibly due to her still-injured state.

After a time that felt less than enough, they pulled back.

"So…" Yang said, her voice small and raspy. "Does that mean that we're…?"

Blake, who barely could contain her excitement, say with a hint of nervousness, "Only if you want to."

The blonde puffed out her cheeks and started rubbing the back of her head while her eyes travelled downwards.

"Is it okay if I want to?"

The deadpanned Blake merely pulled her into another kiss. And this time, the demon kissed back.

When they finally pulled back, Yang was the opposite of composed. Her mouth was open, still not quite believing what just happened. The front part of her hair was a little messy and tangled, which, in the human's opinion, made her even cuter. Her entire face was flushed red, so much so that if Blake's mother walked in at the moment, she would've guessed that Yang had a fever.

The dark-haired girl asked, "Does that answer your question?"

The tomato-faced girl stuttered stiffly in response, forgetting how to talk. "Y-yes."

"Good." Blake smirked.

Yang blinked several times, trying to wrap her head around what just happened. When she did, she looked at her arms back and forth and grinned. "Hey, look! I'm fully healed!"

Amber eyes widened. "What?!" She quickly leaned towards the blonde in hopes of seeing it herself.

She grabbed the demon's hands and slowly twisted it around; searching for any kind of bruise and finding none.

"Incredible…" she muttered out, scanning the girl in front of her and her lack of injury.

The younger girl let out a chuckle, "Hey, Blake?" she suddenly asked, ducking her head a little. "Could you… get off of me, please?"

The dark-haired girl frowned. "What?" she asked, before realising what the yellow-haired girl meant.

They were in a very intimate position.

Blake was on top of Yang. Their faces were inches apart, the older girl's hands were on the side of the blonde's face, guarding her, while the younger girl's hands were holding her hips, preventing her from falling.

A _very_ intimate position indeed.

"Girls! Hurry up! Your food's gonna get cold!" came the shout of her mother, instantly snapping Blake back to reality.

The dark-haired girl yelped and staggered back, almost falling down if not for the demon's hands that strongly held her legs.

"Whoa there, Blake, easy," Yang blurted out sheepishly, unable to cover her worry.

Blake gulped before mumbling, "Please help me stand up."

"Okay, My Princess," the blonde said.

Blake expected her to wink in a playful gesture, indicating that it was meant to be a tease.

But, when she witness that the demon did nothing other than doing what she was told to do in a very delicate manner, Blake realised that Yang truly was being honest in addressing her in such a way.

She almost fell down again.

"Girls? Is everything okay?"

Blake blinked a few times before going out of the blonde's room only to talk to her mother.

"Hey, Mom, I think Yang and I are gonna skip dinner," the teenager excused herself swiftly. "We both have... _lots_ of things we need to discuss." Her eyes widened and she quickly retreated. "School things, I mean!"

Kali frowned, but nodded. After apologising towards her mother, Blake went back to the demon's room, finding the occupant sitting in her bed.

"Hi," Yang greeted shyly.

Blake took a deep breath. "So… finally…" she said with a smile of relief.

The blonde let out a chuckle of embarrassment. "I hope I'll be good enough for you…"

All it took from Blake to calm down her nerves was the simple gesture of touching her shoulder.

"You are more than just good enough for me, Yang."

Another nervous chuckle emanated from the young girl's mouth. "Okay, whoa," said Yang. "This is… a lot to take in."

"Believe me, I know."

A few weeks ago, she never would've believed that demons even existed. A few weeks ago, she never would've believed that she would live with a demon herself.

A few weeks ago, she never would've believed that a person as endearing and nice as Yang actually was real.

A few weeks ago, Blake thought she knew everything about the world.

It was amazing how sometimes things could change in an instant.

Like how only an hour ago, she believed she was going to have a relaxing day.

But this… this was exciting, stimulating, compelling, heart-pumping.

This was wonderful.

This was far better than what she had planned for the day.

Her eyes started to focus back again at her new… romantic partner. But Yang didn't seem to be as happy as before. In fact, she was frowning and looking down, deep in thought.

"Hey," she said, gaining the blonde's attention. "Can you please tell me what happened?"

Yang sighed and looked back down again. It was obvious that, for her, it was anything but easy to talk about. "I was only trying to gain more… information about my dad… then, out of nowhere…" Her eyes squinted as she continued. "I really did try to avoid getting into fights, but…"

She ended her vague story with an apprehensive shrug.

"Yang…" Blake sighed. Taking a look at the blonde yet again, she frowned, remembering how powerful she could be. "Did you even put up a fight?"

The blonde didn't answer, and instead she shrugged again. The gesture worried her. The more logical answer would be for her not to put up a fight, especially remembering how badly she was bruised.

But what if she did put up a fight?

The older girl took a few steps in order to take a better look at the blonde girl. She knew that Yang was fine, but she couldn't help herself, not while she knew that the demon was hiding something.

"Blake, honestly," the taller girl mumbled with a blush, "I'm fine, you don't need to worry."

Ignoring the blonde's protests, she asked, "You said you were looking for your dad, correct?"

Yang flinched. "W-well, yeah, mostly just a few information and stuff…" Her eyes drifted away, breaking their stare. It was obvious that the blonde didn't like diving into this specific subject. She was scared.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

The blonde shrugged.

Blake sighed in disappointment. "I thought I told you that I'm going to help you from now on, that we were going to search for him together."

The blonde looked down sadly. "I know what you said, but I just-"

"No buts," Blake cut her off. "Look, how about we just start from the top; what do you know about your father?"

"What?" Yang asked, blinking a few times.

"You obviously can't find him yourself," Blake said with a roll of her eyes.

After blinking another few times, Yang asked again, "You want to help me?"

"Of course I want to help you! I care about you too, Yang!" The words left her mouth without her allowing them too. Instantly after she said it, her cheeks felt like it was burning.

But she didn't deny anything she said.

"I really do," the dark-haired girl added in a voice close to a whisper. "Now, please let me help."

When she saw her girlfriend nod, she knew that she needed to focus.

' _Girlfriend, I like the sound of that,'_ a voice in the back of her mind said, a voice Blake quickly shut off in embarrassment.

Getting back into focus, she saw Yang, frowning, deep in concentration, before answering, "Well, he must be human, that's for sure… and he lived here, in this city, I mean… well, that's about it."

Blake raised an eyebrow. "Is that all?" she asked with a low tone, already knowing that she won't like the answer.

A guilty nod confirmed her fear.

The older girl sighed. "Look, do you have anything that could help us find your father? Anything at all?" she empathized.

"Like?" the blonde asked, her head tilted to the side, oblivious to what the girl meant.

"I don't know," she replied, exparated, putting her hand on her temple. "Maybe a photo?" she suggested with an open arm.

She looked back towards Yang to see that she was starting to play with a strand of her hair, twirling it anxiously as she bit her lip. "Well…" She practically cringed. "There is this-"

"What?" Blake eagerly demanded, taking one step closer towards the demon, eyeing her, knowing that when they were this close, Yang could never lie to her.

In this distance, or the lack of it, Blake could feel the girl's soft breathing. She could see her chest heaving up and down rhythmically. She could smell the vanilla and sunflower-like scent of the blonde.

She sensed, she felt all this, and all she could think of was; ' _She smells nice.'_

"My mother's phone."

Blake blinked a couple of times before her common sense came back to her.

"Oh," she breathed, frowning, wondering why that, in the back of her head, she knew that sentence was supposed to be important.

Yang coughed intentionally. "Blake? It's my mother's phone… there might be some information in it, right?"

The girl's frown deepened. In mere seconds, she finally fully regained her mind.

"Oh… right," she said rather sheepishly, taking one step back. The girl took a few calm breaths, just to get her mind back on track and not let any… things… distract her.

"Okay," she nodded afterwards, eyes down on the floor and mind-gear running quickly. "You have your mother's phone, right?"

The demon's way of confirming that sentence was with a nod.

"But I haven't used it," said the blonde suddenly.

A sweat dripped down from Blake's forehead as she asked cautiously, "And why is that?" already feeling that the answer to her question would be something very painful.

"I don't know how to turn it on."

Yes. Very painful. _Painfully_ idiotic.

After hurting herself because of how hard she slapped her head and letting out a long tired breath, Blake asked as nicely as she could, "May I see it?"

The blonde nodded with a million-dollar, oblivious smile before walking towards a small drawer that, when opened, revealed a flip-phone.

"Wow," was the only thing Blake said as she walked towards the old device, which was currently being rotated up and down by the owner's frowning daughter.

"See, this is very different from your phone," Yang sighed desperately, poking at each and every part of it.

Blake could only roll her eyes seeing that view. "Give me that."

The demon did as instructed; handing over the phone to the human. But when she tried turning it on using the power button, nothing happened.

"Huh," was what she could only say with a raised eyebrow.

She tried again and again, all of the different buttons, but none worked. All the while, Yang simply stared at her, waiting patiently.

After nothing changed excluding Blake's mood, she, with a frown, said, "I think the problem is in the battery."

The demon blinked two times in response.

"You know," Blake continued, "battery?"

She frowned for half a second before grinning and responding cheerfully despite her answer, which was, "I have no idea what that is!"

"Right," Blake sighed as she internally facepalm.

' _Why do I always keep forgetting that she's practically an alien?'_ she asked herself.

"I think…" the dark-haired girl began to say after quite some time of thinking. "I think we can still charge it, using my old chargers, I mean."

"Really?" Yang responded. "Where is it, then? This 'charger' thing?"

"Downstairs," Blake explained. "In the…" Her eyes widened as she say, "If it's still there, and if it does fit with your phone, that means…"

"That means…?" the half-demon repeated, wanting her to actually finish her sentence.

The human smirked confidently. "That means that this phone," she gestured at the flip-phone, "could still work."

"Really!?" the blonde cheered, grabbing the other girl's wrist, saying, "Well, What are we waiting for!?" and simply ran out of the room.

All the while, Blake fought the urge to scream because of the sudden gesture and to blush because of the sudden contact.

Blake was convinced that, not only did the demon had super-strength, she also had super-speed. But, judging by how fast the blonde was running with seemingly no effort, it was most likely true.

"Where are you two going?!" Kali, from the dining table, asked, watching two teenage girls running towards the small garage.

"School assignment!" Blake responded quickly, not trusting that Yang could say the right and convincing excuse.

So, in mere seconds, they stood in the unlit, dusty, small room recognized as her family's garage.

"Wow," Yang said, the echo in her voice quite noticeable. "This room is… dark…" she finished lamely.

Blake grunted, her hand travelled on the walls, trying to find the switch. It didn't take her long before she finally turn on the lamp.

"There, happy?" she quickly retorted sarcastically.

A positively-sounded hum answered her question.

But, after a quick look-around, the human quickly agreed to the demon's earlier statement. Even with the lights on, the room was still dark, as if it was a black hole, stealing away all the light-source.

' _The rain surely doesn't help,'_ Blake thought to herself as she shivered momentarily, hearing a distant thunder and the harsh rain growing louder and louder by the minute.

She felt like she was currently a character from a horror movie.

Her feet moved on their own, and in mere seconds, she found herself near Yang, who didn't seem to be scared in the slightest.

On the contrary, she seemed curious and awed.

"So, this is the… attic? I presume?" Yang said, who, without question, had her shoulders up in the lack of knowledge.

The innocent guess made Blake chuckle, sending away some of her feeling of fear. "No," she defied. "We don't have an attic. This is a garage."

"Man," Yang sighed rather frustratedly, "really thought I was right this time."

Blake wanted to question what Yang meant by that when she found what she was looking for.

"Aha!" She grinned and started pulling the large cardboard box with her name written on it.

"You found it?" the blonde asked with a hint of eagerness in her tone of voice.

The human didn't reply and decided to put the box down on the floor, the voice causing a large echo that caused the two girls to cringe.

"Yaiks," the demon commented.

The human could only nod, non-verbally agreeing with her.

So, they started searching for the device that could help them indirectly find Yang's father. It didn't take them long before they finally found a charger. And, much to their relief, it did fit into the old phone perfectly.

"So, how long does it take?" Yang asked right after they charged it, starting to tidy up the box.

"I don't know," Blake truthfully answered. "Hopefully, soon."

Her amber eyes travelled down onto the box that filled her mind and heart with nostalgia.

"So, what's with this box, anyways?" Yang asked, plausibly knowing that it was important. "What did you put in it?"

The black-haired girl replied, "This is filled with the things from my old house… from my old home…"

"Why did you move?"

There was a genuine, sincere curiosity in the tone of Yang's voice. The kind that Blake knew she shouldn't try to avoid from answering.

So, with her eyes narrowing down, she tried with all her might to remember the exact thing that happened.

"Everything was normal. I had school. I had friends. We all lived so normally. But, one day…" She frowned deeper and deeper as each sentence went on.

"My dad just told us we were going to move… He didn't tell us why, but I overheard him once talking on the phone, probably with the other cops, saying things like 'it's spreading'." She scoffed, slowly shaking her head at the ridiculousness.

"Maybe it's a virus… but, I never heard of any disease in Menagerie… Maybe it was work-related stuff… Maybe… Maybe my dad just doesn't like it there anymore."

In the end, her voice was nothing more than a whisper. A solemn, echoing, confused whisper. A whisper that quickly faded away, as if it was never there in the first place.

Blake didn't want to look at Yang. She didn't want to look at anything at all. She preferred to keep her gaze down on the her old box, the box that contained most of the memories of her old life. Her old and far simpler life.

A flashing object caught her attention. As she focused her sight more, she found that it was something she thought she'd never see again.

"My phone…"

She forced a smile on her face, knowing that Yang probably wouldn't enjoy a grim situation.

Turning her head towards the blonde, she half-expected her to be curious or confused, instead, the demon's face was colorless as she stood there. Her eyebrows were furrowed a little, and she was sweating a little.

To say that Yang looked a little off would be an understatement.

"Yang?"

The person in question blinked several times before she could fully register her surroundings. When she did, she stuttered, unfocused, "O-oh, right, yeah. Let's see!"

Before the dark-haired girl could say anything, Yang already sat down cross-legged, her eyes looking at anywhere but amber.

Blake looked at her suspiciously for a few seconds.

After a while, Yang nervously said, "C'mon! I wanna see!" with an obviously forced smile.

Deciding that she would ask the blonde about it later, Blake, with eagerness, turned on her old phone, supposedly filled with so many pictures worth of good memories, only to see a screen that showed 70 unread messages.

"Wow, Blake, you never told me you had a boyfriend," Yang said with an off-sounding chuckle.

The human immediately frowned and slapped her arm not too strongly. "Don't joke like that!" she strongly said with a hint of care.

She chuckled before answering politely, "Sorry, Blakey."

The girl in mention raised her eyebrow. "Blakey?" she repeated, not knowing whether she should be embarrassed, amused, or appreciative on the given nickname.

"Yeah! Do you like it?" the blonde asked in a way that reminded the girl of a child.

"I-" she stopped herself before lying, "of course," when in reality, she didn't know what to even feel about it.

Suddenly, they heard a vibration coming from the edge of the room.

Yang was alert in an instant, but her shoulders dropped once she realised that it was only her mother's flip-phone. When she did, she practically swept it off the table and started pressing every button.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," the human said, grabbing the demon's shoulder. "Calm down."

Yang, realising what she just did, took a deep long breath and said, "Sorry. Here," as she gave the phone to her.

"You gotta calm down, okay? We're not gonna find anything with a broken phone," commented Blake.

Yang chuckled in response. "Yeah."

When the phone finally turned on, the first thing Blake noticed was that the wallpaper was blank.

'That's odd,' Blake wanted to say, but decided not to.

Then, she started going through the gallery, and found nothing. No videos. No photos. Nothing.

"What?" Blake questioned out loud this time.

"What is it?" Yang asked, not understanding the other girl's confusion.

"It's… weird…" Blake said, tinkering through the notes, as well as the other applications. "It's like this phone doesn't belong to anyone…" After some thinking, the dark-haired girl decided to ask, "Are you sure this is your mom's phone?"

"Of course it is!" Yang half-shouted. "It's got to be!"

With a gulp, Blake kept picking random apps in hopes of finding something, anything.

She ended up going in contacts and that's when she found something.

"Yang, look." She pointed towards the only contact available in the ancient phone.

'TAI' it read.

"What is it?" the blonde asked.

"I… I don't know," the dark-haired girl answered. "It could be some sort of code," she voiced her thoughts.

Her mind-gear started to turn, figuring out what or who this 'TAI' could be.

'Is it a corporation?' she guessed. 'It's definitely an acronym… but for what?'

As she tapped her foot impatiently, Yang half-suggested half-pleaded, "Should we try calling it?"

Knowing what the demon desired, Blake firmly looked into her eyes and answered as stoically and clearly as she could. "No, not until we figure out who we're calling."

She knew that it would break Yang's heart, but it was for the demon's own safety, as well as her own.

"I'm sorry, Yang," she said honestly, seeing the sight of the blond-haired girl deflating like a balloon and into a depressed teen.

"This is hopeless."

Blake couldn't help but to agree.

They were supposed to find out who or what they would call based on three simple letters, if they ever would call that number.

And when they actually did call it, what would they say?

Everything was simply too risky and complicated.

It all made Blake close her eyes and took a deep, long breath.

"Let's… figure this out tomorrow…" Surprisingly, it was Yang who said it. Blake looked at her and found that she was looking at her almost apologetically.

"Alright," she said with a nod.

Her eyes travelled back to her old phone. The phone that was filled with so many unread messages. So, she grabbed it and turned it on.

"What are you doing?"

Blake simply answered, "Finding out who's been texting me."

' _Could it be Illia?... no, we still kept in touch,'_ Blake tried to guess.

She scrolled up, from the very first unread message. It was from years ago. More specifically, the year which she left her old home.

It was the exact time and date of when she moved.

And it already scared Blake.

 _Why did you leave me, My Love?_

Rocks had been put in her stomach. There was no other way to explain why it felt so heavy.

The oxygen had left the room. There was no other way to explain why breathing came unnatural to her, even if it came natural to the blonde next to her.

"Blake?"

She heard that voice, the voice of her current lover, calling out for her in mild anxiousness. But she didn't listen.

She chose to ignore it.

She chose to keep scrolling down. Reading every single message. One by one.

 _You left me. Without even telling me. Why?_

 _Why Blake? Why did you leave? And why aren't you answering?_

 _It's not you, Blake. It can't be. We were in love… We still are in love…_

 _It's your parents, isn't it? They forced you to stay away from me. There's no other way._

 _They never agreed to us. It all makes sense. Why else would you want to leave me? After everything._

 _I'll find you, Blake. Don't worry. I will find you soon._

She could hear his voice. His broken, pleading, angry voice, screaming at her, feeling betrayed.

It made her feel sick.

"Blake? Blake, talk to me. What's wrong? Who is that? Did he hurt you? Blake? Blake!"

Her heart thumped louder and faster the more she read these messages. Slowly, the time in which these messages were sent became more and more current.

And the more time went on, the more sadistic and psychotic these messages became.

 _Now, I have power. Now, I'm in a respected position. Now, I can finally start looking for you._

 _We can finally be together, My Love._

 _I've sent many men to come and search for you all across the country. Men whom I made sure will never disobey me._

 _Your father is very good at hiding. I'm impressed. But nothing can stand in between us, Blake. Nothing._

 _It's only a matter of time, Blake._

Years had turned into months. Her vision began to blur, yet, she could still perfectly read all of these messages. Her arms and legs felt like they were noodles. She felt someone grabbed her shoulder, keeping her from falling down.

But she kept reading.

She couldn't stop.

 _One of my men told me that you live in a small city called Vale… is that true, My Love?_

 _It must be hard for you to live in such a small, rotten city. Don't worry, I'll come and rescue you._

… _My Love. It seems that your friend has foiled my plan to… capture you and bring you to me… It is such a shame. He was one of my best men. Yet that blonde demon defeated him. Don't worry, My Love. Just you wait. We will be together once-_

Before she could read the end of that message, the blonde had already snatched her phone away from her and threw it away onto the floor.

"Blake! Snap out of it!"

She looked up and found lilac eyes staring at her with terror and great concern.

She quickly hugged the blonde, saying, "Yang."

She couldn't say anything more than that, and when she tried, the demon shushed her, telling her, "Don't speak, okay, just… let it all out."

And so she did. She couldn't remember much of what actually happened, she just felt that she was giving out all of her worries, sadness; all of her negative emotions.

And Yang took it all in.

Even after she started to calm, the blonde didn't made any effort to push her away. She still held onto the raven-haired girl, caressing her, treasuring her, treating her as if she was made of glass.

And that was when it happened.

 _CRASH!_

Both of them jumped at the sound. Even with the rain outside, it was still so loud and clear.

Blake knew that something was wrong, but it was Yang who reacted first, touching her lips with her index finger, a universal sign that replaced the words that was, "Be quiet."

Slowly, the two girls went out, towards the source of the voice. One of Yang's hand was gripping onto Blake's hand, her hold as hard as stone, while the other was raised and formed a fist.

"Mom?" Blake called out.

Suddenly, Yang clamped her mouth shut. Blake looked at her with a frown, silently asking what was going on, before her eyes drifted to what Yang's eyes were looking at.

Her mother.

Laying on the floor.

Unconscious.

"She's alive," Yang whispered to her, trying to convince her.

Blake, who was now breathing too fast and digging her nails into Yang's arm, couldn't even find the energy to nod.

"Blake, listen to me very carefully, I need you to run, okay?" Yang whispered silently but commandingly.

Blake wasn't listening to her. All of her attention was focused on her mother. After looking at her for so long, she finally could see the faint rising and falling of her chest, a sign which meant that she was alive.

A small relief flooded over her, before it was replaced by pure terror when she heard footsteps coming from in front of her.

Slowly, her eyes drifted up.

There were six men. All of them wore black and red clothing. Their face was covered with a plastic mask.

All except one.

All except for the painfully familiar face of her former lover, looking at her with his infamous sneer.

"Hello, My Love."

Yang cried out with rage, charging at the men surrounding them, visibly still tired from her previous injuries to put up a long fight.

But, even as her girlfriend suddenly changed her clothes and somehow summoned a gauntlet from thin air, Blake was still like a statue.

She was frozen, unbelieving of what she was seeing.

She stared at him, and he stared back.

His red eyes filled her heart with so many complicated emotions that can't be mixed together.

She was relieved, happy. Yet she was sad. Yet she was angry. Yet she was scared.

She felt all of these emotions. It surrounded her, it clouded her mind. It blocked her from clearly registering what was happening in front of her.

She sensed each men grabbed her shoulder. She saw one of the men carrying a syringe. She smelled the blood that belonged to Yang. She tasted the tears that dropped onto her mouth.

She heard Yang calling out for her, screaming at her to run.

She felt herself trying to break free from their hold, and failing. She felt a stinging pain on her neck as the men shot her with it. She felt the effect of whatever was in that thing on her entire body. She felt herself getting number, heavier, weaker, less conscious every second.

She sensed her entire body obeying the rule of gravity as each and every part of her, one by one, slowly dropped to the ground, still intact.

She saw everything became darker and darker, as if the sun was setting, but quicker and scarier.

And, just before she succumbed herself to sleep, she heard these words, words with great meaning.

Words that sounded unclear; making her feel as if she was underwater.

"Will this truly work?... side-effects?" her former lover asked.

"No, Sir, we made sure..."

"... will we do with the demon?"

"Idiots, that's not a… … I know someone who…"

The last thing she felt was concern; concern for Yang's well-being. Not her own.

* * *

 **Author's Notes : I'm sure you all are wondering why I haven't uploaded a new chapter all this time… to put it simply, family issues, accidents, school-work, band practise, school drama, physical illness, possible mental illness.**

 **I was busy dealing with all that.**

 **But, the good news is, the stakes are high now. Things will get really serious… at least, for me it's a good news.**

 **After reading all of your comments, it's safe to say that you care about both Yang and Blake. So I, as a mentally healthy person, say to myself, "Wouldn't it be nice… if something were to happen?"**

 **So... At the beginning of this story, I already planned out the entire conflict. But now, after reading through it again, I realise how boring and predictable it is so I said, "f*ck it! Happy stories are boring anyways!" and so this chapter was born.**

 **Um, so, I hope you all have a fun time reading this chapter. I really enjoyed writing it since it's filled with so many crazy things. Have a nice day, no wait, not just 'day', have a nice life! And also afterlife as well!**

 **Bye!**


	10. Memories of Her

Blake knew only a few things when her mind had partially woken up. The fact that her eyes were shut. The fact that she was lying somewhere cozy. The fact that she knew there were other people, talking, even when she couldn't hear what they were saying. And the fact that she needed to tell them something.

Something important.

' _But what?'_ her hazy, unfocused mind asked to no one in particular.

Maybe she was asking at herself. Maybe she was asking at fate itself. Blake didn't know whom she was asking that question for, and she didn't want to know the answer to it. Not right now. Not in the near, nor the long future ahead of her.

She couldn't bring herself to do anything. Not to speak. Not to move any part of her body; not even her smallest finger. She didn't know why.

Maybe it was because she couldn't do anything.

Maybe it was because she didn't _want_ to do anything.

She also knew that she was exhausted, more exhausted than she'd ever felt during her entire life.

It was a type of exhaustion she'd never felt before too.

It wasn't an exhaustion in which she had continuously run for miles with no stop, nor was it an exhaustion in which she had completed dozens of exams in one day.

No, this was an exhaustion in which even a thousand words could not even accurately describe.

Her body was frozen, melting into the soft mattress, fusing with it.

It was as if she never had a body, nor mind, of her own.

She couldn't even be sure if she was in any pain.

She simply allowed her dreams to take her where it wanted her to be; letting the flow of her mind guide her to some place that was, hopefully, safe and nice.

Hopefully.

* * *

Everything was unauthentic.

There was no other way to explain it.

She was in her room. The books were stacked in the correct order. A few of her clothes were hazardly placed on the floor carelessly. One small novel was placed on the desk right next to her bed; a novel in which she was currently reading.

It looked just the way she remembered it.

But it was also different.

Very different.

It was as if she was looking through a sunset-colored lenses. Either that or the walls were transparent and the rays of the sunset had found it's way into her room, or, more precisely, it invaded her room.

It changed her room.

It changed every color within the objects of her room.

The wall, in which was previously colored with light purple, was now light orange instead.

Her bed, in which was previously covered by a dark purple mattress, had changed into a dark red instead.

Everything had changed into yellow and red, to put it simply.

It was so surreal.

Blake knew, that with all of her heart, she was standing in her room; the room she'd been inhabiting for years.

But, looking at it, the odd change of colours, and the lack of noise; no sound of her mother cooking or watching something downstairs, nor were there any sounds of any vehicle passing by, the girl knew that she wasn't in her room, not entirely.

This was anything but usual.

One might've thought that, the white silence surrounding everything and the sudden change in colors, might make everything off-putting. Unnerving.

But, to her own surprise, Blake felt the exact opposite way.

In some way, she could think rationally. Calmly.

She didn't sense a hint of fear from within herself. Not one bit.

She was not afraid.

' _Is this… a dream?'_ she tried to guess, still perplexed and shocked by where she was, her amber-colored eyes rapidly darting around in order to see if anything was amiss.

A dream. That was her conclusion. There was no other way to explain it.

Right?

There was no way to explain the way her room looked. There was no other way to explain the lack of noise.

And there was certainly no other way for her to explain why her body felt like it was made out of light itself. As if she wasn't really where she was. As if she didn't exist.

There was no other way to explain it.

' _But… why doesn't it feel like a dream?'_ her mind asked to no one nor anything in particular.

She had asked towards nothing, and nothing answered her.

Her body, which had already been light before, became even lighter, as if she was a ghost or astral-projecting.

But, even after she told herself that this was all a dream, after she told herself to wake up, she still stayed in this place, and nothing happened.

She wasn't waking up.

She didn't know what had happened to her. She didn't know what was happening to her. She didn't know what was about to happen to her.

She knew nothing; nothing except that this was too familiar and too realistic to be a dream.

If this was a memory of some sort, then she couldn't remember which memory this was.

"Hey," a voice said from behind her.

A voice that she knew she should know, a voice she knew that she should recognize, but didn't, not in the way that she'd expect.

She knew that voice. That comforting, light-hearted, calm voice. But at the same time, it was so unfamiliar.

Blake knew that, in the back of her head, not only could she identify that voice, but she had so many emotions towards it.

Many more emotions than she'd ever remember feeling.

It was overwhelming, in a sense.

But moreso, it was frustrating for her not to be able to pinpoint who the voice belonged to. It was even more frustrating that the girl didn't know why she didn't remember as much as she'd hoped to.

She slowly turned around, afraid that everything would shatter when she moved, afraid that the person behind her would disappear, like a dust being blown away, the second Blake saw her.

And what she saw immediately caused an immense reaction towards herself.

The girl in front of her.

The girl with the yellow, curly, long mane that, in this particular lighting, made it appear as if they were glowing strands of angelic, dream-like gold.

The girl with those beautiful, almost hypnotic, red-tinted eyes that were large and full of emotions, as if they had a life on their own.

Silently, Blake prefered those colors to be violet instead.

The girl she knew that she should recognize. A girl she must know. A girl so dear to her; so important.

The girl she couldn't remember.

Blake's feet took a few steps, her entire body slowly, but surely, walking closer towards the girl, only stopping itself when she was only a few inches away from the girl.

The faint freckles around her cheeks. The shape of her nose. The small bags under her eyes. The small wrinkle around her eyebrow.

Blake could see it all.

Every single detail adorning the blonde's face, the blonde's features that she doubted the blonde herself knew about: Blake saw it all.

So how was it possible that, at the same time, the girl in front of her was nothing more than a blur.

A blur.

That was what the girl was and was not.

How was it possible? And _why?_

It was as if Blake had never seen her before; never in her life.

Blake frowned in intensity, trying to recall something about the girl, something that no one could see, but hear instead.

Her name.

The raven-haired girl wasn't sure if she actually recalled what that special name was, but she tried to say it anyways.

Her mouth was opened. Her vocal chords trembled with force as she spoke. Her lips formed itself in the way that she wanted; in the way that the blonde's name was pronounced.

"..."

A breath was the only thing to come out of her mouth.

Her face turned into one of shock, before slowly melting away, changing into an even deeper intensity; a profound concentration.

"..."

The name she so badly wanted to hear didn't reach towards her own ear. And she was forced to simply stood there in wonder; wondering about many things.

But, most importantly, wondering why she couldn't say the girl's name, if she truly did remember what her name was.

With a sudden realisation, the realisation that Blake might not be able to remember her name anymore, she took a step back.

She took a step away from the person she could no longer remember much of.

Blake, without truly realising it, let out a shuddering breath and crossed her arms in an attempt to comfort herself by a hug. All the while, she sensed that, in the corner of her eyes, tears were starting to form.

' _Why am I crying?'_ she thought to herself, wiping away the non-existent tears, fighting back the urge to weep.

When her eyes were dry and she was sure that no tears would soon fall out, her hand instinctively reached out onto her chest, to where her heart was placed.

Her small, thin, delicate fingers attached themselves onto her chest, trying to feel something, anything, in order to find out why she had been in tears earlier on.

Hollowness.

A lack of something.

Something important.

But what?

Another voice drew her attention. A voice she deeply recognized. A voice from behind her. A voice that belonged to her.

Her own voice.

"Hey."

She turned around and saw that, curled up in a ball of sadness, covered by a blanket, hiding her face with her knees and arms, was herself.

' _I look… she looks like a mess,'_ Blake thought with wide eyes, shocked to see her own self being in this state.

Of course, using the word 'mess' would mean that she was simplifying things.

Blake took more than a few steps back until the wall greeted her back, meaning that she was in the corner of the room, knowing that, for whatever reason, it was best for her to simply watched what happened.

These two girls, being the blond-haired girl and… herself, wouldn't be able to see her, as in, the real her; the her that was practically a ghost.

So, she watched as the scene in front of her unfolded, similar to the way a person would watch old videos of their childhood.

"I…" The blonde girl scratched the back of her head, looking at the other Blake with so much concern. The sight warmed the current Blake's heart and brought a small smile on her lips.

"I know why you're sad. I know about what happened, between you and Sun."

The other Blake hugged herself tighter while the current one raised both of her eyebrows in shock and interest.

"How?" the other Blake asked, her voice suggesting that she'd been crying. Either that or she hadn't drank anything for weeks.

The girl chose to believe the former option.

The blonde put her hand down and threw both of them into her pocket, shrugging warily as she replied, "Ruby told me."

"Oh," was the black-haired teenager's only reply after a moment of silence.

The Blake that wasn't part of this dream slash memory, scrunched up her face, partly in confusion as to why her flower-loving friend would tell this girl about that, and partly in interest as to what this strangely familiar blonde would do next.

"It's fine if you don't wanna talk about it," said the yellow-haired girl as she slowly walked towards Blake, careful not to show any sign of aggression of hostility, acting towards her with such great care, as if treating her like a thin piece of glass that could break at any moment. "I just want you to know that it would never happen again."

The real Blake's reaction to this was to simply raise her eyebrow, wondering what she'd meant by those words.

The dream Blake had a very different reaction, however; she had a much more vocal and emotional reaction towards the girl's words.

And, looking at how broken she was, the current Blake shouldn't really be surprised that her other self was acting the way she was.

The other Blake tilted her head up, her gaze meeting the blonde's, while at the same time, shocking the real Blake at how devastated her other self looked.

Her eyes were bloodshot and her nose and cheeks weren't in her usual pale pink, instead, it was almost in a crimson shade of red.

It was clear to everyone in that room that the poor girl had been crying.

It was also clear to everyone that the girl was also trying to hide her tears. And failing miserably at it.

It took the blonde only a few seconds before she decided what she was going to do. Blake immediately noted that this girl was a person who acted with not much thinking, if any at all, fully relying on her feelings instead of her brain, especially seeing the way the blonde quickly gave the other Blake an embrace.

It was clear to Blake now that she meant a lot to the blonde, especially seeing the way she cradled the weeping Blake, holding her gently, softly, warmly.

"It's okay, everything's okay now," she soothed the dark-haired girl. "It won't happen again, I _won't_ let it."

It was also clear to Blake that the blonde meant a lot to her.

The dream Blake let a single tear dropped onto the other girl's shoulder as she spoke one word. One word that the current Blake could not hear, no matter how much she wanted to nor how much she tried.

"..."

The blonde's name.

"..." the dream Blake spoke again, her arms reaching out towards the other girl, embracing her back as more tears escaped from her eyes, flowing down like river.

"What he did… What he almost did," the girl said with grimace on her face, her grip on the other girl becoming stronger and more protective. The current Blake was certain that the blonde herself didn't notice, but she surely did, and that small action meant a lot to her for an unknown reason.

"It shouldn't happen. It should never happen," the yellow-haired girl continued with a hint of regret in her tone of voice.

"It's not your fault," the now Blake thought and wanted to say, and the dream Blake actually said, albeit in a much slower tone.

"I…" said the blonde indecisively, red eyes looking down. "I want you to know that I would never hurt you Blake. I swear it, on my life, I would never hurt you."

There was a sparkle on the dream Blake's eyes, as if all this time, the sky had been filled with the dark night, but, somehow, because of the blonde's words, the bright sun had finally risen.

The real Blake also had that spark.

"Thank you, …," the dream Blake whispered, the last word, which was undoubtedly the name she wanted so badly to hear, was muted out yet again, as if it was censored for some baffling reason.

Everything started to fade away, flickering, like a flashlight that was repeatedly being turned on and off again.

The whole room, everything, it all was starting to become darker and darker each second.

Blake knew what this meant; she was waking up.

She wasn't scared. Not at all, really. She knew that it was a matter of time before she finally went back into reality. She knew that, one way or another, she was going to leave this dreamland.

Now, everything was dark, except for the two girls that still embraced each other.

Blake's eyebrow raised a little at the sight of the two girls glowing, even if only faintly.

She sighed while closing her eyes before opening them back again, looking at the blonde more than anything.

Blake knew that, based on how they interacted, and how she felt, that the blonde was anything but a stranger. She was not just a friend, but she was closer than any of her other friends, even Ruby. She was her best friend.

Blake, for some reason, felt like it was more than that.

She might not had remembered much about this girl, if anything, really. But one thing was for certain.

Yang would never hurt her.

A small smile formed itself on the girl as she placed her hand back on her chest again. She felt something this time.

She didn't know what it was, but she liked it.

Amber eyes closed itself, but before they did, she whispered one last thing.

"Thank you, Yang."

* * *

Slowly, unsteadily, gold orbs fluttered open, confusion and fear instantly filling them, but only barely.

They were unclear: Her vision, her hearing, her sense of touch, her feelings. Everything.

She tried to move her arm, her legs, any part of her body.

But she couldn't move them, any of them. Not yet. No matter how hard she tried.

Unsatisfied by the results, she resulted to try and see better. She was laid in a soft texture, a bed was her guess, but she couldn't understand why.

She was facing up, looking at the bland white ceiling.

' _...White?'_ a part of her asked, hazily remembering that her room regularly had a light violet ceiling.

Suddenly, came the smell of something far from pleasant.

It wasn't a horrible stench, but it was a stench that reminded her of needles, stethoscope, and many of those other hospital devices.

Which meant she was in a hospital.

Something bad happened to her.

She tried to speak, but there was some kind of pressure around her mouth that made it harder for her to move her lips.

She looked down onto her nose and found that she was wearing an oxygen mask.

Something very bad happened to her.

She heard voices. Voices that belonged to people.

A person suddenly stood above her, looking at her. He appeared to be saying something, but she couldn't understand what.

She could faintly see the outline of his lips moving around, forming different shapes, and the fact that there was noises coming out of it.

But that was it.

Noises.

Noises that was supposed to be words.

Noises that, in her ears, wasn't words.

Then, another person showed up.

This time, Blake knew who she was. She could never forget those dark amber eyes that were like her own, only darker in comparison. She could never forget the small, gentle smile she always wore; the smile she was wearing now.

"Mom," she breathed, knowing that the woman in mention would know that she called out for her, even if she couldn't hear the girl's word.

She fell into unconsciousness once again, but this time, she knew that when she woke up, she wouldn't be alone.

* * *

She felt the sensation of her fingers twitching with little of her control.

She felt her eyebrows moving, furrowing themselves as she opened her eyes.

She felt a small, whisper-like moan escaped her lips, one that she wasn't too sure others might hear.

She slowly opened her eyes, afraid of what she was going to see, now that her mind had became more clear.

It was the same foreign white ceiling.

She heard two noises coming from her right; pages flipping and electronic beeping.

Slowly as to not hurt her already pained head, Blake turned around.

There she sat; Kali Belladonna.

Her hair was tied to a little messy, but strong bun. She was wearing a simple white shirt with a black leggings. And around her back and shoulders, lied a blanket.

' _Someone must've put it there,'_ she thought to herself absentmindedly.

Many believed that she and her mother was as different as night and day. Especially since her mother tend to be more extroverted and she herself tend to be more… socially inactive.

Many believed that Blake was the exact copy of her father, Ghira Belladonna, for many reasons. But, the main reason was because they both tend to brood so much.

But when she saw the way her mother was reading right now -flipping these pages once in a time, her expressions changing only so slightly that Blake was certain only she would notice, absorbing every information like a sponge absorbing liquid- she knew that those people believed in the wrong thing.

Subconsciously, Blake shifted to her side so she could see her mother better. Her mother must've heard her, because as soon as she did it, her mother looked at her and instantly gasped, "Blake."

"Hey," Blake tried to say, but ended up with a voice quieter than a whisper.

It was then did she realise that she was still wearing the oxygen mask.

She tried to lift her arm and open it, but realised that the task was impossible with how weirdly heavy, yet weak her arm was.

Her mother flashed her a smile that could soothe Blake even in the middle of a hurricane. "The doctors told me you're supposed to wake up in another hour."

Blake's shoulders lifted slightly as an attempt to shrug.

The woman stood up and walked towards her daughter, pulled out the oxygen mask for her, and started cupping her cheek as she sat on the edge of the bed, asking, "How are you feeling?"

Blake frowned as she started asking that question herself.

She already knew that moving was a task that had became as hard as interacting with people she'd just met, which, in her case, was extremely hard.

But, as she started to try and truly feel herself, she didn't feel pain, not any kind of pain.

Her entire body was sore, but that was it.

There wasn't any part of her body that hurt.

What was really concerning for Blake was her memories. It was… blurrier, for the lack of a better term. Almost as if she was holding a camera that couldn't be zoomed in or out.

"Heavy," the girl uttered after a long thought. "... And… Weak," she added, looking at her arms and wondering why it wasn't obeying her command to simply move.

"Mom, what… what happened?" Blake asked, feeling herself became more and more worried the more she got a better look at her mother.

Not only were the woman's eyes red, but the entirety of herself looked very concerning.

Her hair was tied to a bun. Blake knew how much her mother hated tying them into that. She only wore them for emergencies.

And, based on how disheveled her clothes were, the girl guessed that her mother hadn't showered in… however long she was asleep.

But what was most concerning was her look.

Her mother had an expression that was filled with many emotions. Emotions caused by a deep emotional pain. Emotions caused by an accident that happened to her daughter.

And much more.

So, with that, Blake asked again, mouthing her words more, hoping it sounded more clear. "Mom. Please, tell me what happened." After quite a short time of thinking, she, with her eyes wide, asked, "And where's Dad? Is he at work?"

Her mother sighed in reply. "I'm sorry, Blake, I'm sorry for what happened… I should've known not to trust her…"

' _Her?'_ she repeated in a questioning tone, as her feelings of uneasiness grew more and more, dreading to find some sense of explanation from her mother, or anyone, really.

"Mom, what are you talking about?" she gasped out, unable to contain her worry, but, to her luck, the woman in front of her couldn't hear any of the words she was speaking. Either it was because she was too deep in thought or because Blake's voice was just too small.

"She just…" her mother stuttered, something that almost never happened. "She just looks like _such_ a good girl, I should've known better, I just…" she bit her lip before sighing, giving up. "You two were the best of friends, maybe even-"

"Mom," she intended to shout, but ended up speaking in a volume that was barely larger than normal. "Who are you talking about?"

Her mother quickly gaped at her, as if she'd said the most unbelievable thing on this planet.

"...You… don't remember?" she asked, her voice suddenly weak and hollow.

"Remember what?!" Blake shot back, in both desperation and anger.

"The reason why you were in a coma for the three days!" her mother shouted, her voice echoing throughout the room, and possibly the whole floor.

Blake's mouth hung open as no words came out of it as her heart skipped a beat. She knew that she'd been unconscious, but she thought she'd only been asleep for hours, not even a day.

"...Three days?" the dark-haired girl echoed. Suddenly, her entire body became heavier, her chest especially so. Her mind had become more and more tired, yet, awake at the same time.

She didn't feel good.

"Honey," her mother said, snapping her out of her train of thoughts. Her tone was soft and motherly-like, it was the type that brought Blake comfort more than she'd admit to anyone. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"I…" Blake closed her eyes and furrowed her eyebrows in intense concentration, trying to remember anything. Her hand, as heavy as it was at the time, moved to touch her head, trying to numb down the pain she felt as well as the sudden exhaustion.

"I don't know…"

"Please, Blake," the woman said, her voice as soft and gentle as a flute. "Try, for me…"

"I am, Mom," she replied with her eyes still closed, "but it's all so… fuzzy," she said, unable to find the better word to describe it, "it's like… it's like they're dreams, but… not…?" she said, halfly confused.

"What are you seeing?" her mother demanded, worry starting to grow noticeably on both her face and her voice.

Flashes of images appear the more she concentrated.

School. Ruby. Raining. Umbrella. Sidewalk. A smile.

A Raincoat.

The pink raincoat with red dots.

"I was…" Blake tried to explain, feeling as if she was experiencing that day once more, "I was walking home… it's raining… I remember getting mad over the _stupid_ pink raincoat you brought me…"

Her mother chuckled on the raincoat part, not to her surprise.

"And then… A tree? A… something…" her brows furrowed ever deeper, but, it was as if she was trying to catch something, but ended up catching it's shadow instead.

It just didn't feel right.

"...Nothing… Not yet," the girl finally breathed out.

Light amber eyes looked up to find the darker ones to be filled with distraught.

It gave her the courage to ask again, "Mom… what happened?"

Her mother simply looked down before hugging her, the woman was obviously still deep in thought. Blake embraced back but with so much gentleness, her mind racing with a million questions, questions that she, with no doubt knew, her mother wouldn't be able to answer.

"The important thing is that you're okay," her mother whispered, her voice cracking. Blake's eyes widened when she felt her shoulders getting wet.

Realising that her mother was in tears, the girl tightened her embrace as best she could, giving her mother as much comfort as she could, silently letting her know that her daughter truly was awake, and that she was alright.

But, somewhere in the back of her mind, the girl knew something was amiss.

No, not something, someone.

But, when she tried to recall who that person was, she ended up getting nothing but fragments. Pieces.

Yellow hair.

Purple eyes.

A goofy smile.

So little that she could remember.

And, as much as she hated it, so much _more_ that she could not.

Looking into nothingness, Blake thought to herself, no, she told herself, ' _Something's wrong.'_

The only question was; what?

* * *

 **Author's Notes : So, originally, this was supposed to be a long chapter, and I mean, a** _ **very**_ **long chapter. The mid-draft had about 7.000 words, and I wasn't even** _ **halfway**_ **finished!**

 **So, instead of taking a very long time developing a very long and messy chapter, I, instead, decided to cut out the first half of the chapter, add more details into it, and so, this chapter was born!**

 **I would also like to give a shout-out to NightFlare! You're the best for always reviewing my work with so much positivity! I wish I could actually PM you, that way, we can have so much fun chatting with each other!**

 **So, lastly… goodbye!**


	11. Truths and Lies

Blake squinted at the bright light being directed onto her eyes. But, as much as she wanted to, she couldn't look away or shut her eyes.

Apparently, this was part of the doctor's 'procedures' to see if there was any 'damage' to 'what happened'.

She visibly sighed in relief when he turned the small device off. But he still kept an eye on her, analysing her in a way that made her feel as if she was guilty in some kind of crime. She even leaned away as much as she could in her hospital bed just because his stare was unnerving.

"So," he finally said after a long, intense, awkward moment of silence, "nothing? No memories about what happened?"

Blake gulped before closing her eyes for a few moments. Her head still throbbed and her entire body felt like she hadn't eaten anything for days. Which, in reality, was the truth. More or less so, she hadn't eaten anything as long as she was unconscious, unless the IV drip, or whatever that liquid thing was called, counted.

In fact, there were, admittedly, more… side-effects from a coma, or rather, waking up from one, than Blake thought.

The first one was how hard it was for her to even stand, let alone walk. Proven by the fact that even after three hours she'd woken up, she still couldn't leave her bed.

The second and most noticeable one was how hard it was to think and remember, as if there was a wall separating her from her own mind.

The doctors said that there could still be other side-effects, but Blake hoped that these were the only ones she would suffer.

"Well, there's these…" She struggled to find the right words to describe things, also one of the less torturous side-effects. "...images. Like… a dream, but… it feels… real…"

"Images?" the doctor repeated. "Such as…?"

The dark-haired girl tilted her head away and closed her eyes, ashamed of herself as she said, "I… can't remember. The more I tried to, the more it just… disappears... "

"I see…" The doctor nod, his eyes remained skeptical, as if she was hiding something.

Her eyes drifted downwards, onto the white floor, as she frowned in too deep of a thought.

It had only been an hour since she woke up, so it was, in her opinion, normal to not be able to recall some things.

But what she couldn't recall wasn't just 'some' things.

They were more. She didn't know what they were or why they were more, but they just were.

The same feeling in her chest, it rose up, called out. It wanted something. It wanted someone.

"What's wrong with her, Doc?" her worried mother asked.

The man wrote some things down in his paper before answering, "Hopefully, nothing, Miss."

"But, she can't remember," she said, her tone pleading in a way that made Blake frustrated, angry.

It was obvious that something happened to Blake, something horrible. Her mother was never this worried. And what made it worse wasn't that she was in a coma in the first place.

What made it worse was that her mother was worried at the fact that she couldn't remember.

Her mother had unintentionally made it appear as if what happened to her wasn't just _any_ horrible incident.

Blake tried to ask as many times as she could, but her mother always dodged the question.

The girl tried to be patient, but the way her mother looked and acted just made her even more frustrated, so much so that she snapped.

"Can't remember what, Mom? The fact that some guy just decided to attack me at my own house?!"

The room froze.

The doctor stopped writing and slowly leaned away from the two dark-haired woman, silently wishing that he wouldn't be apart of this family drama. The nurses -who had been going in and out of the room, bringing a few medicines and supplies and simply helping the doctor- walked away from the room and closed the door as quietly as they could.

But Blake wasn't paying attention to them, to any of them, she was too busy looking at her mother, unwilling to look anywhere else, letting her mother realise that she wasn't happy with the way she was treated.

Her mother saw her with a look that Blake never saw before. It was tense, it was hard, it was unwavering, it was shock. But it was also longing, it was also hopelessness, it was also dejection.

'You really don't remember, do you?' that look meant.

It made Blake feel angry, faithless, and sick; all at the same time.

Her mother was the first to break the contact. Darker shade of amber looked away from her and towards the doctor, angrily demanding, "Why can't she remember?"

Blake had never seen her mother so furious before, it only further increased her negative emotions, but now, she knew that lashing out wasn't the way to handle this, not to her mother.

She knew that her mother wouldn't tell her about what happened.

' _Whatever it is that happened,'_ she said, her eyebrows furrowing ever so slightly.

"In time, most likely, she will remember," the doctor reassured. "There had been several cases before in which the patient gets temporary memory-loss after they woke up. Often times, they regained her memory back."

Blake sighed in relief. Her shoulders slacked down. But, for whatever reasons, the doctor's words had the opposite effect on her mother. She became tenser than she already was, her shoulders rising as she crossed her arms and gritted her teeth in a great amount of worry.

The doctors gave her the list of medicines she should take as well as explained some of the other, less serious side-effects of waking up from a comma.

After hearing the reassurance from the doctor that Blake would be fine, according to his diagnosis, the doctor left the two mother and daughter alone.

Blake wasted no time in asking, her voice as loud and clear as possible, as if speaking to a person with hearing problems, "Mom. Please tell me what happened, _please_ ," she repeated the same phrase twice, hoping that doing that would increase her chance of succeeding.

Her mother, in response, sighed before answering in anything but clearly, "Someone… someone close… tried to hurt you… to hurt all of us."

Blake bit back a snide remark and asked again, "Who?"

Kali instantly looked away, the younger woman thought she saw tears beginning to form in the corner of her eyes.

She was silent, and Blake prayed that within that silence, her mother would, eventually, gave in and finally revealed to her what she'd been hiding for so long.

Blake wasn't sure how long time had passed. Maybe it was seconds. Maybe it was minutes. But, however long time flew, the dark-haired girl made sure with all her willpower that she would keep looking at her mother with the saddest pleading face she could muster.

It also helped that she was friends with Ruby Rose; the master of pouting.

Eventually, Blake won, judging by the way her mother sighed and slacked her shoulders.

Afterwards, her mother looked at her with the most crestfallen, grim face Blake had ever saw her wore.

"Yang."

That was the only word that came out of her mother's mouth.

That was the word that made Blake momentarily forget how to breathe.

That was the word that made Blake's heart momentarily forget how to pump itself.

Blake's thought immediately screamed thousands of words, all racing through one another, disoriented, messy, unclear, panicked.

' _Y-Yang?... No, she… she wouldn't… would she? I… No, she can't, she promised me she wouldn't that day when… when…'_

"Blake?"

' _When was it… when did she tell me…? Why am I forgetting all of this? This is all important. Is it?...'_

"Blake."

' _Yang… Yang… I know her, I care about her… She's the one that… that…'_

All of her thoughts halted when she felt herself being pulled into an embrace.

One that she was too weak to return.

But as comforting as this hug was, she needed a different kind of hug. She needed a strong, firm, yet gentle hug. She needed a kind of hug that only one person could give her.

And she missed that person.

' _No, this is wrong, this is all wrong,'_ her mind shouted, unbeknownst to the woman who gave birth to her.

"I know it's hard, you two were so close," her mother said, her voice breaking yet again.

Blake hollowly chuckled to herself, laughing at the fact that she couldn't remember much of it; much of her.

Something was wrong. Blake knew it. As little as she remembered the blonde, she knew that Yang would never do such a thing.

She might not remember, but she still felt it.

This… emotion.

She didn't know what it was, but it was strong, unstable, big, and it was telling her that Yang would never hurt her.

That was why something was wrong.

"Thankfully… Adam came just in time to save us."

Blake stiffened and paled, two actions that went unnoticed by her mother, who continued talking as if she was speaking about the weather and not the girl's slightly sadistic ex-boyfriend who she still secretly had feelings towards.

"I have to say, when I first learned that he didn't go to school and went to go and be a cop, I thought he was a lost cause, but now I can see why you liked him."

Blake never would've guessed that she would hear that name being spoken, much less by her own mother. But even less likely, she would speak that name.

"A...Adam?" she stuttered out.

Saying that name brought out a great sense of nostalgia, to put it simply.

Memories came back in a flash, and, unlike the recent memories, they were clear as day.

The memory in which Adam fought school-bullies for her.

The memory in which Adam helped her get on her feet when she was injured.

The memory in which Adam taught her how to fend for herself.

The memory in which Adam made her realise that she had feelings towards him.

The memory in which Adam asked her to be his girlfriend.

The memory in which they shared both of their first kiss.

All these memories.

"Yes, he told me you called him and asked for his help. So he travelled across cities just to save you," her mother said with a tone that closely resembled relief and joy.

"He… did?" Blake found herself asking, before her eyes going wide and asking another question, that was, "where is he now?"

Her mother chuckled lightly, as if she was grateful. "He insists on taking the lead of the investigation, along with your father. Apparently… Yang got away…"

Blake forced back a breath of relief, knowing that if she did let it out, her mother would have lots of questions.

The atmosphere, which already was heavy to begin with, turned not only heavier, but also quite darker.

It was as if someone had pulled down the curtains and turned off the lights.

But, with a fake cough, Kali tried to soothe both of them by saying, "But, hey! At least now your boyfriend slash future husband and father will finally have the chance to bond, wouldn't that be great?"

Blake's face changed from sadness, into confusion, before melting away into mortification. "Mom! We're only sixteen!"

As she recovered from her shock of hearing her mother's comment, Blake slowly said in a hint of regret, "Plus… when we leave to Vale… I wasn't on good terms with him…"

Her mother pulled away from her and asked, "What happened?"

Summarizing it all, Blake merely replied in a soft whisper, "It's my fault."

Her mother quickly patted her shoulders and tried to comfort her. "Hey, Honey, it's alright, he doesn't hate you, I know he doesn't, if he did then he wouldn't be doing all of this."

"All… this?" Blake said with more than just a hint of confusion.

"Yes," her mother replied. "He's so scared to see you get hurt again, so, he replaces all of the workers from this hospital with his own men."

With both eyebrows raised, the girl asked in disbelief, "Really?"

When her mother nodded at her, the color red slowly crept towards her cheeks.

"Wow," she breathed out. "I guess he doesn't hate me after all..." Silently wishing that not only did the red-haired boy not hate her, but he still had at least a piece the same feelings towards her from years back.

Back before she left him.

* * *

The instant Blake saw her, her lips curved into a big wide smile.

Silver eyes widened in disbelief, before they started to form happy tears that, thankfully, didn't fall.

"Blake!"

The short girl ran up to her and practically squeezed her to death.

Blake was thankful that the nurses nor doctors were here to see this, otherwise they would've kicked Ruby out of the room because they thought this was an attempt at murder.

"It's good to see you again," Blake rasped out, still in pain from both the young girl's bone-crushing hug and from her coma.

"Oh my gosh! I can't believe you're finally awake! Thank _gosh_ you're okay! When I heard about what happened I came and saw you and you wouldn't wake up even after I shake you and dumped water on you even though the doctors didn't allow it and Weiss visited too and she couldn't come visit you now because she's busy with business stuff but I'm sure if she isn't she would be-"

"Calm down, Rubes, you're overwhelming her," a male voice said from behind.

Only then did Blake notice that, leaning towards the frame of the door, was a blond man with ocean blue eyes, looking at her with such a knowing look.

Blake only nodded her gratitude, too tired to even speak to the man she presumed to be a relative to Ruby.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean for it, gosh you must be so tired right now, have you eaten anything yet because Dad and I brought you something you may probably will kinda maybe like!" she said, finally finishing her ramble as she pointed towards her father; the man holding up a large plastic bag with a grin that definitely was inherited by her daughter.

Blake, with her eyes wide, mumbled in embarrassment and gratefulness, "You shouldn't have."

"Psh! Yeah, right!" the man said not unlike a teenager, his entire attitude reminding her of someone for some reason.

Someone that, as much as she wanted it to be, wasn't Ruby.

"You deserve this, Kiddo, I'm sorry about what happened," he said genuinely.

"Thanks, Mister Rose," she stated.

He chuckled before replying with a hint of playfulness in his eyes, "Just call me T-"

"Oh!" Ruby quickly shouted, alarming Blake and cutting off her father's words. "Weiss told me to tell you to get well soon and also sorry that she couldn't be there," she said with her trademark, innocent grin.

Blake rolled her eyes and shook her head, doing all this not without a smile however. The father merely chuckled from the back.

"You should've seen that man, Kid," Ruby's father said, scratching the back of his head in a way that was gut-wrenchingly familiar to Blake. But she pushed all of these feelings down, knowing that she should pay attention first, and figure out why he was so hauntingly familiar later.

"Your father really cares about this investigation, and that Taurus boy _really_ does want to get mixed up in all of this," he said, ending his sentence with a grimace, a hint of suspicion.

But his phone quickly buzzed before anyone got to question him for his words. When he looked at his device, he cursed in a whisper that went noticed by the two girls before saying apologetically, "Sorry girls, duty calls."

And after putting the plastic bag down on a table, he left.

"So…" Blake started, "how was school?"

The brunette immediately perked up, her silver eyes radiating as she rambled on and on, "Oh, it was fun! But kinda lonely without you, I mean, you never talked that much, not that I'm saying you're _boring_ or anything, it's hard to believe that you're in a coma for three days, and kinda scary too."

With that last comment, Blake shuddered slightly in fear as she breathed out, "Believe me, I know."

The young girl's expressions turned into one of sadness for her friend. Blake couldn't bear to see her like that. She knew that the brunette considered her as family, a sister, even, so she needed to wipe that dejected look off of her face.

Blake faked a cough: A universal sign which meant that they should talk about something else.

"How's everyone doing? Did something interesting happen?"

Ruby gave her a knowing smile before it turned into a wide grin. "Well, Weiss is out of town doing her Schnee business-y stuff, even though I told her for a millionth time not to, Nora is being Nora, Ren is, as usual, trying to stop Nora from being _overly_ Nora, and both Pyrrha and Jaune are still clueless as ever."

"I see, so things are just the wa-"

"Also I kinda ask Weiss to be my girlfriend."

With her dropped jaw, and her wide eyes, the dark-haired girl, not quite believing what she'd just heard, asked, "Pardon?"

The usually bubbly brunette flinched and ducked her head down even more, shyness clearly taking over her.

Her voice was small and much more uncertain than usual as she explained rather slowly, "I… may or may not have asked her to be my girlfriend… and she may or may not have agreed… and now we may or may not be… dating… as in, official couples… as in… holding hands, and hugging, and stuff…"

After a long time of silence that was, undoubtedly painful for the small teen, the dark-haired girl finally was able to muster out, "Ruby…"

"Yes?" she asked, anxious silver eyes locking with amber.

Blake quickly pulled her into an embrace, unable to contain her excitement much longer.

"I'm so proud of you," she said, her voice filled with so much joy, which was something big, since she almost always had a flat, monotone voice.

"Thanks, Blake," she could hear the other girl say before they break apart from their friendly slash sisterly embrace.

They stared at each other for a while longer. The raven-haired girl was beaming with pride and approval, while the red-haired girl was clearly still shy about this whole ordeal.

Suddenly, the invisible light-bulb above Blake's head flickered on, and her face twisted into that of a villain devising his plot to destroy the world.

"Really?" she said, sugar-coating her voice, throwing an innocent look at the younger girl. "Only hugging? Are you sure?"

Ruby gave out a reaction that was far better than what the girl had imagined.

Stumbling backwards because of a sudden question, the girl's pitch of voice was suddenly high as she squealed out, her face as red as her name, "Wha-? Y-yes! We just hug and hold hands and stare and stuff! Nothing more! I swear! No lips involved!... Yet."

Blake flat-out laughed, to the point where tears starting running down from her cheeks.

Ruby began to realise that she'd fell into one of the girl's clever traps and whined loudly before pouting that definitely made her look years younger than she actually was, "Blake! Stop laughing!"

But, as much as she wanted to, the hospitalized girl couldn't even manage to stop herself. It was only when her stomach started to hurt did her laughters died down into chuckles before slowly disappearing, and even then, a wide grin was refuse to move out of her face.

"How did you do it? Ask her out, I mean," the girl with the amber eyes said, her eyebrow raising in genuine curiosity.

"Well…" The girl chuckled in an attempt to not seem nervous; a failed attempt, in Blake's opinion. "We were studying together, and, like usual… I wasn't paying attention, and she was getting mad at me for not paying attention…"

Blake knew where this went. Either Ruby or Weiss would suddenly kiss each other out of passion, exactly like in those not-for-children book that Blake secretly used to read. _Used to._

"So, to make it up for her, I started asking her questions about the subjects and stuff…"

It would be so fun to hear all those juicy parts about the more-than-just-kissing. Blake could already feel her mouth drooling, and it was noted how her sense of hearing suddenly increased tenfold.

"... So, I was asking a few questions, and, remember, I was so bored at that time, I didn't even know what I was saying… I accidentally asked if she wanted to be my girlfriend… and she accidentally agreed…"

Blake blinked once.

"We didn't realised what happened… not until it was too late anyways…"

Blake blinked twice.

"... Neither of us realised that all of the other students were watching us…"

Blake's jaw dropped.

"And now everyone's throwing a party to celebrate us being together… for some reason, they really like us being a couple… it's almost like they _knew_ we liked each other, which is completely ridiculous, in my opinion!"

At that moment, Blake probably should be dubbed as 'The person with the longest facepalm in history.'

"Blake? Blake is something wrong?" Ruby asked, and when Blake didn't reply, the girl actually had almost called the medics if not for the older girl stopping her.

"Ruby… how do you even… just… how?" was what Blake muttered out for a few minutes, while Ruby continued to sat there, completely oblivious to the dark-haired girl's immense, deep, burning pain caused by ignorance.

After she regained her composure, which probably took a few agonizingly long minutes, the two dark-haired girls started to conversate with one another, talked to each other.

Although, it was mainly Ruby who did the talking, recalling what happened in school when Blake was absent.

Apparently, the whole school had dubbed the newest couple to be 'White Rose.' A name which, in Blake's humble opinion, sounded perfect. It was either that name or 'Ice Flower.'

In the midst of the brunette's words, Blake started zoning out, thinking. After encouraging herself to, the girl suddenly called out apologetically, feeling guilty of cutting off the young teen's words, but, this was a serious matter.

"Yes, Blake? What is it? Is something wrong?" instead of being slightly hurt at being cut off, Ruby was, as the good friend she was, instantly concerned and ready to help her in every way possible.

"I know this is hard for you, but, right now, my memories are still… fuzzy," Blake stated with honesty. She could feel Ruby becoming more silent as she finished her sentence. "I wanted to know… what Yang was like, as a person."

Ruby bit her lip and look away, her bangs covered her face, so it was hard for Blake to tell how she looked and what she was feeling. But it was no doubt that the brunette was still heart-broken about what happened.

"Please, Ruby," Blake begged, "Mom wouldn't tell me anything, and Dad's still busy investigating," she said, explaining her situation to the younger girl, hoping that she would comply once she knew the dark-haired girl's intentions. "You're the only one that can help me."

It was silent, for a while. Only when this silence occur did Blake realised that the sun was setting. It casted a light, pink-ish yellow to the walls, floor; basically, the entire room.

The lighting was so similar to the one in her dream.

And Ruby also looked familiar to the girl in her dream.

 _Very_ familiar.

With the way the ray of sun was shining, it made Ruby's hair look a lot of shades lighter than it actually was, one might even say that the girl had yellow hair.

Her eyes reflected the color of the sky, which was a combination of red, pink, and yellow, erasing all traces of silver.

Ruby still looked like herself, but also, at the same time, she looked like someone else, someone whom Blake knew was important to her, even if she didn't know why that person was important.

The yellow-haired brunette chuckled lightly, but even so, one could not miss the amount of emotions that flowed through that sound of laughter.

It was a chuckle of both happiness and the opposite of it.

"Yang is… nice. Like, if a stranger asked her for directions, she would gladly take them to the place without asking for anything in return. And… she's also really strong, as strong as Pyrrha, even… maybe even more…

"But she's also very thoughtful. One time, when I was having a bad day, so she brought me a pack of cookies _just_ because she knew how much I loved them…"

Eyes with the color of sunset met with her own.

It was moments like these in which Blake forgot that Ruby was only fifteen. It was moments like these in which Blake was reminded why Ruby was in the same desk as her in school.

It was moments like these in which Blake saw the side of the girl in which the girl herself didn't realise she had.

A side of herself she was showing now.

"You two were really close, I think you might even be… nevermind."

As if on cue, the brunette's phone buzzed. And with that, the moment was over. Although Blake was still very-well shocked, both from the way the girl was acting and what she was saying.

"Crud," she heard the young girl cursed under her breath.

"Hey, listen," the brunette said with a sympathetic smile as she stood up, rubbing the back of her head. "As much as I wanna be with you right now, it's getting pretty late, and I have homework to do, um… so, I'll see you tomorrow, Blake!"

"It's alright, Ruby," the dark-haired girl answered, flashing her a warm, understanding smile.

The brunette suddenly hugged her and whispered, "I really did miss you."

That hug did not last long, but Blake made sure to hug back as well as she could, letting the brunette know how she felt about her.

When they finally pulled away, Ruby only say, "Bye, Blake, try not to fall into a coma again."

Blake chuckled and shook her head at the girl's antiques.

But, unknown to each other, their smile soon disappeared when the door was closed, separating them.

The disappearance of the two girl's smile had their own reasons. Reasons that would be revealed soon.

* * *

 **Author's Notes : 'Yellow-haired brunette'... is… is that weird?... Psh, who cares! It sounds good, so I'm gonna put it!**

 **So, um, I hope you enjoy reading my story, and I also generally hope that you all have a good life.**

 **Let me know what you guys think about this chapter. Are you mad? Sad? Disappointed? Proud? Shocked?**

 **Reading your reviews always makes me happy! So, if you can, maybe you would do that? Pretty please?**

 **So, um… bye?... yeah… bye.**


	12. Forms of Denial

Amber eyes stared to what lied in front of her.

A solemn view, the city in the time of slumber.

It could be compared to the night-sky itself. Having thousands of small flickering stars that would always be captivating, only this time, the stars were lights coming from all the different buildings pinned down all over the city.

Blake stared.

Only blinking when her eyes dried themselves.

Only when necessary.

With what she was staring at, most people would presume that she was admiring the view, soaking in every detailed-beauty, being awe-struck by the overall magnificence.

Most people would not be correct.

Ever since she woke up, Blake's panicked heart told her that something was wrong.

She decided to keep that to herself, knowing that if she tried to explain what she was feeling, people would just brush it off, saying that it was simply a case of paranoia, or something along the lines of it.

Maybe they were right.

… No. They couldn't be. This was more than just her being paranoid or jittery because of the coma and having to adjust to waking up from it. She just _knew_. It was the truth.

Something was _wrong._

There was no other way of explaining why she couldn't sleep even though every part of her body begged her to. No other way of explaining why she, for the first time in almost forever, couldn't bring herself to enjoy reading.

The girl had tried at first, but she could only find herself staring at the same page for far too long. Even after she concentrated and tried harder, she couldn't really dive deep into the world of literature.

After trying again one more time -and failing to actually make herself read the page- she closed her book and put it down. Since then, she'd never touched it again.

No. Reading wasn't something she could do right now. Nor was sleeping. Because something was wrong.

' _But what?'_

She slumped down onto the chair cross-legged in the far left side of the room, directly facing the window. Her arms tightly gripped onto the armrest without her notice. With her limited peripheral vision, she looked through the magnificent view of the large city of Vale beyond the glass frame, letting her eyes soak in every detail that was presented.

For no longer than a second, her amber orbs drifted to the side, what she saw was a small desk, and on it, sat a few of her books her mother had brought her, as well as a few new ones.

Her heart swell at the sight, silently thanking her mother over the thoughtful gesture. Her lips even curved into a small smile.

But that smile only lasted for a moment. It disappeared as quickly as it arrived.

She still was drowning in anxiousness and fear, her own mind screaming at her that something was wrong.

She'd been worrying, panicking even. And she was partly glad that others failed to see the signs of it.

They missed her small changes in behaviour: The way she flinched and looked away everytime the word 'memory' or 'remember' came about, the way she tried to pry more informations about what happened, not only because she was worried, because she wanted to know why everyone was so disturbed by it.

Why they were all so disturbed by what Yang supposedly did.

Something was wrong. Something was missing: that was what a part of her had been telling her for the past hours in which she had awoken.

… Yang.

That name, or rather, the meaning behind it for Blake, had been haunting her more so than she'd like to admit, even while she suspected that Ruby knew what she was feeling currently.

But she didn't remember as to why.

There was something deep inside of her that always seemed to… awoken itself -for the lack of a better word- whenever it was mentioned.

That thing, whatever it might be, seemed to make her feel lots of different emotions. Happiness. Sadness. Anger. Fear.

And… one other feeling that she wouldn't even _dare_ to mention.

Her heart seemed to reach out for that name, for that person. For the supposed person that had caused her father to go on investigating for days without any break. For the supposed person that had caused her mother's heart to be pained. For the supposed person that had betrayed her family's, her friend's, and her own trust.

For the supposed person that had caused her to be where she was and what condition she was in now.

In a hospital, weak and confused, but most of all, scared.

Scared for her parents. Scared for her friends. Scared for herself.

But mainly, scared for Yang.

A part of her… doubted that it was the truth, that Yang would do such things that many officers and doctors told her the girl had done. All the horrible, unfeeling, ruthless things that a sixteen years old had done; Blake doubted them all.

And the other part was sickened of that doubt, wondering why she felt the way she did, and why everything seemed amiss.

This whole scenario was like puzzle to her.

And a piece was missing.

No, not missing. Someone had hidden that piece from her. Someone had prevented her from finding that piece, from completing the puzzle.

Blake took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down for the hundredth time.

' _Calm down,'_ she warned herself.

She didn't tell anyone about this; about whatever this was.

For some reason, she felt like she shouldn't trust the doctors nor the nurses.

Maybe it was simply her being overly-suspicious. But whatever the reason was, Blake still wouldn't trust them, not yet, at least.

She never told her mother about this. She knew that her mother was still saddened about what happened. Or, more specifically, she was saddened about Yang, and what she supposedly did.

Blake simply wanted to hug her mother and tell her that Yang would never do this.

But she _couldn't._

She didn't even remember Yang, so how could she know what the girl would or wouldn't do? And even if she did, would her mother believe her?

Would anyone believe her?

Blake doubted that the answer was a cheerful, hopeful yes.

She tore her gaze away from the night sky. She was tired. Her eyes begged her to close them. Her arms and legs hadn't been as cooperative as she would've liked them to.

But she couldn't sleep, nor did she want to.

Her eyes travelled onto the digital clock laid next to her bed which read 00:23.

' _I really need to sleep,'_ she thought to herself, her arms gripping the armrest of her chair, attempting to lean on it when she stood up. That was, until she heard something coming from the door.

Two simple knocks.

Blake frowned and looked back onto the clock, making sure that the time really was when she thought it was, before saying, "Come in."

The door slowly opened to reveal an all-too-familiar figure.

Blake forgot how to breathe.

"Adam…"

* * *

Swollen, bruised lilac eyes slowly opened only to meet nothing but pitch black.

Seconds ticked by -judging by the pounding in her head that served to confuse her even more- and in those long seconds, she'd considered that she was in some kind of dream or hallucination. That, or that she'd somehow gotten blind.

Yang opened her mouth, attempting to call out for help, but stopped when she realised that her head wasn't the only thing that was in pain.

Her mind slowly registered the pain all around her body. Bruises, cuts; everything. Soon, her eyes widened in alarm. She quickly tried to move her arms and legs.

When the girl did so, she was met with nothing but more pain. But with that effort, she realised that she was forced into a sitting position, her arms and legs chained with the hardest, thickest shackles she'd ever felt, strapped tightly onto the metallic chair.

She bit back a hiss of agony, deciding instead to try and slow down her breathing and, by extension, her heartbeat.

' _Okay, okay, just... relax yourself. You can't do anything when you're panicking, so, calm down,'_ she kept telling herself.

She kept breathing in and out, taking long pauses in-between, ignoring the burning pain all over her body.

Soon, her mind began to clear, and she finally recalled what had happened.

She remembered trying to find out more about her father. She remembered the name 'TAI' in that old phone. She remembered those men that hurt Mistress Belladonna. She remembered doing her best to defeat them all. She remembered the way Blake looked at-

' _Blake.'_

All of the tension in her muscle and the fog of worry in her mind disappeared in the blink of an eye. They were replaced by the warm fuzzy feeling in her chest. The hot and redness in her cheeks. And the taste in her lips.

' _She… kissed me,'_ she thought, her lips formed a small yet goofy smile as she remembered every little detail.

She remembered the shock of it at the first few seconds that it happened. She remembered giving into as an overwhelmingly large urge to kiss back. She remembered stating to herself that she should celebrate this day every year as a tradition to herself.

She remembered how happy she had been in realising that Blake Belladonna, the girl she was head over heels with, harbored romantic feelings towards her as well.

Even thinking about it now, despite the circumstances, made her chuckle soundlessly.

' _Blake…'_ she simply said to herself, knowing that thousands of words just couldn't describe her feelings towards the human.

There was a noise of footsteps, which sounded like high heels, coming from in front of her, right outside of the room.

She swallowed a lump in her throat and told herself to focus on the situation she was currently in; kidnapped.

She looked around, ignoring the complaint coming from her sore body, desperately trying to see beyond the darkness, but to no avail.

Judging by the lack of sound, she assumed that she was in a small room.

' _Interrogation room, perhaps?'_ she suspiciously guessed.

Taking another deep breath, she tried to move yet again. The results were the same, a large amount of pain from every fiber of her being, creating a sensation not unlike being whipped and stabbed.

But there was something more.

Her strength, or, rather, her lack of it.

Before she could press on the issue further, she heard the sound of the keys jangling and clanking against each other, before the undoubtful sound of it unlocking the door.

Her eyes protested and she quickly looked away, no matter how much she didn't want to, when the door opened. The lights that invaded her eyes were simply too torturous for her tired eyes to handle.

She did caught a glimpse, and her suspicion was correct, it was a woman. She had a slim, lithe figure, and the girl could've sworn that the figure wore a dress.

Her mouth breathed out a sigh of relief when the light ceased to exist as the door closed. But that relief only lasted for mere seconds.

The atmosphere in the room changed significantly. There was a thick air filled with a haunting sense of dark, sinister aura: the woman's aura.

The girl probably would've noticed that she was sweating profoundly if not for the sudden fear that indulge her as soon as this mysterious woman arrived. It was more than odd that she was sweating, since the room's temperature dropped remarkably, almost as cold as ice itself.

Her entire body trembled with fear, and she hoped with all her might that the dark woman wouldn't notice it.

She didn't want her to know that she was terrified.

After swallowing another lump, she put on her brave mask and said, "My uncle's going to find you, you know."

She might not be able to see anything, but she could very well feel the woman's presence: Her maddening, powerful presence that made her sweat in ice.

"And when he does," she continued, trying to act unfazed, "he _will_ destroy you."

A hollow, amused chuckle resurrected itself from the undoubtedly evil woman. It sent nothing but shivers down her spine, and, in a certain way, froze her.

"He did find me."

The woman's voice was soft, gentle, some might say seductive. But the girl sensed what was behind that voice. There was malice. There was hunger. There was corruption.

There was insanity.

"But," she paused for a moment unknown to the girl, "he couldn't even lay a hand on me."

A wave of terror, dread, and concern hit her as she realised the implications and possible meanings behind the woman's words.

As sternly and firmly as she could, the girl asked, "What do you mean?"

The woman in front of her let out another chuckle, this time, more sinister. If the previous sound of supposed joy had frozen her, then this one had downright crumbled her.

"What I meant is: if your so-called _brave_ uncle hadn't tried to rescue you…" The girl could feel her smile, burning right through her now red eyes.

"He might still be breathing."

The color from her face was drained. Suddenly, she didn't feel like her body was her own, as they were nothing but a limp, sack of nothingness. She had never felt like this before. She had never felt this powerless, this pain, this anger.

The mask of bravery she had tried to put on before was blown away like dust.

"No! That can't be true! You're just… you're just messing with me! He can't be dead! He _can't_!" Her voice was broken and fragile as a feather as she whispered, "he promised…"

The girl looked up, the where she assumed the woman was standing, and felt the sense of her gaze into her eyes, boring right through her soul.

She knew: the woman saw her breakdown as an entertainment.

That made her furious.

So, knowing that she couldn't hide her emotions any longer, the girl tilted her chin up, uncaring how pathetic or pitiful she looked, her eyes refusing to look away even for a second.

"You're lying."

Time went by in heavy silence. During that period of silence, the girl's anger did not dim down for even a slightest bit.

Flame appeared in a sudden second, making her shut her eyes in tremor, afraid that it would hurt her.

The flame did hurt her, but not in a way that she had expected.

Slowly, she cranked her eyes open only to reveal a woman's face.

She had a sharp, oval-shaped face. She looked young -ranging from mid-twenties to early-thirties- but the girl had known since long that looks could deceive. After all, her Aura easily gave away that she had lived far longer than what her face might give away.

She was beautiful, that was for sure. Thin lips, clean eyebrows, thick, natural eyelashes, curly short jet-black hair: Only a fool would not call those features to be mesmerising.

But she was also terrifying.

Her lips formed themselves into a small smirk that almost made her look calm and motherly. Her eyebrows were steady, it gave away no emotions.

And her eyes.

They glowed in an unnatural brightness. Flames flickered and roared beneath it, screaming for power, screaming for destruction. Just by seeing those eyes, the girl rendered herself speechless, motionless, powerless.

Yet, at the same time, she couldn't look anywhere else from it; she didn't desire to. She suddenly found them to be the only thing that mattered. It enchanted her, hypnotized her, even. She felt as if she could look at those orbs all day. She felt herself melting into it, wanting to do nothing but keep on staring.

Gentle, amber-colored eyes that reminded her of the sun-set pulled her out of her trance.

She blinked a few times before looking away, fully aware of what she'd almost gotten into.

A trap.

The woman laughed, amused. "I'm impressed, while it may be unrare for demons to be able to resist my eyes, for a child such as yourself, it _is_ quite… interesting."

Slowly, the girl looked back onto the woman, this time with such delicate precaution as she willed herself not to be absorbed by those eyes.

Now that she wasn't surprised by the woman's face, she could take in her surrounding a little more. The woman was wearing a long-sleeved dress, confirming her previous suspicion. It was a red dress, with black fiery pattern surrounding it.

"I am many things, Yang Branwen," the woman said, finally letting her true colors slip out, her voice no longer masked with gentle and kindness. It was, instead, cold, lifeless, and greatly terrifying.

The blonde leaned backwards just from hearing it.

"A liar is not one of them."

The glowing yellow eyes drifted to the far left. Slowly, lilac followed them, wondering what the woman was about to show her, now that she could finally see better.

What Yang saw shattered her.

It was the scythe that belonged to Qrow Branwen.

* * *

Tired amber eyes stared bewilderedly into his pool of blackness, wondering if the boy standing right in front of her really was real; if she wasn't imagining things due to her lack of sleep and the fact that she'd just woken up from a coma.

What currently stood in front of her was a boy that was so familiar to her, yet so different from how he used to be.

He'd grown so much since the last time she saw him, since too many years ago.

He now had a very strong, broad figure that made him look although he was twenty years old or older, when in reality, he was only two years older than her.

His hair was still kept in it's usual, natural spiky red. Now though, it almost appeared to be glowing.

He wore a black jacket with a red v-neck underneath it, completed by a black, loose jeans.

Blake would've thought she was seeing a completely different person, if not for his eyes.

His eyes stayed the same, and not just the color. The same frown of focus and determination, the same way they slightly narrowed.

Everything was all too familiar, yet so different.

It caused both her mind and heart to spike with thousands of different things. Doubts, worries, fear, happiness, sadness; everything.

He wore a gentle smile that both of them knew had always comforted her before, and one that comforted her to a certain extent now.

After taking a step forward -the sound of his boots meeting the white-tiled floor echoed throughout the room- he only said one word with his voice a whisper.

"Blake."

The way he'd spoken that word was filled with so much relief, and it brought her both pain and joy to know that the word was none other than her name.

But soon, that joy was no more, replaced by dark, self-hating thoughts that clouded over her mind.

' _I abandoned him. I left him without giving an explanation. I let myself be taken away from him without even telling him… I didn't even try to contact him, much less tell him why…'_

It had been far too long for her to even recognize him any longer.

It had been far too long for him to still love her.

Not that she ever deserved his love for her in the first place.

She was too much of an emotional-wreck to notice him slowly proceeding towards her. But she did notice when he pulled her into a strong embrace, her breathing turned into a gasp at the sudden motion, both from surprise and from happiness.

"I'm glad you're alright." His voice was low and raspy, but there was a hint of softness in it, a genuine happiness for her health.

It only served to make her feel even more guilty.

"I talked to the doctors before coming here," he said, his one hand running a finger through her black mane. "I'm glad to hear that you're not in any real danger."

The owner of the wide amber eyes could only say, "Adam…" But the way she'd said it told him how much she missed him and how sorry she was about everything.

He hugged her even tighter as a way for him to tell her that it was all okay.

"Adam," she choked out, not caring in the slightest that tears began to fall from her eyes.

He whispered in her ear, his voice calmed her like it had always done. "Everything's okay now, Blake. I won't go anywhere. You won't go anywhere. We're fine, okay Blake? We're alright."

Tears fell even harder at his soothing words.

"I'm sorry. I'm _s-so_ sorry, I-I should've told you, and I should've- I could've…" She didn't get to finish, mainly because she was overflown by her own tears.

But she didn't have to. With every tear that fell onto his shoulders. With every passing minute, he still held her.

That was his way of telling her that he forgave her.

That was his way of telling her that he still cared.

After a while, they began to lessen and lessen, until, eventually, they stopped altogether.

"Thank you, Adam." That wasn't meant only for what had just happened. It was meant for him still being there for her, helping her, caressing her, and just generally… caring about her.

"Anything for you, My Love."

Hearing that old nickname, a nickname he'd given especially for her many years ago, made her chuckle.

He gently pushed her out of her embrace, but still held onto her. Maybe it was because he didn't trust that she could stand on her own. Maybe he just missed her.

A kiss was planted on the top of her head. A kiss so gentle that she would've thought it never existed.

But it was.

Because the sensation of it, and what came from it, still lingered. The sensation of safety and comfort. The sensation that she thought she'd never be able to feel again.

She missed this.

"I miss this too," he told her, as if reading her mind.

She truly did miss this.

Suddenly, she found herself looking into his eyes as his hand cupped her cheek, making her look up at him. He gently wiped the tears from her face with his familiar small smile.

With no hesitation, he leaned down, locking his lips with her.

She kissed back.

And when they pulled apart, he said with a soft chuckle, "Everything will be fine."

And she thought that, for once, maybe he was right.

Maybe everything would be fine.

Maybe…

* * *

Breathing suddenly became foreign to Yang.

As well as composure.

As well as self-control.

All she struggled to do right now was to not cry in front of the woman who had caused pain towards her, and much more than just towards her uncle.

Her body trembled intensely, causing the metallic chains around her to make clacking sounds. Her eyes began to water, but with all her might, she didn't let any tear to fall from her face.

She forbid it.

"N-no..." She kept on denying, crimson still locked with the object on her far left, the supposed proof that the woman was telling the truth.

It was damaged, plausibly from how much he'd struggled while fighting. Uncle Qrow was a very skilled-fighter. Nobody was able to touch him. _Ever_. And he would never let anything crease or damage his beloved scythe, no matter what the circumstances might be.

"...No..." she said as she shook her head.

The chains trembled even more, but now, she refuse to try and fight anything anymore.

"No…"

She tore her gaze away from the object, the object that she now knew was proof. Proof that he was-

" _No_."

A single tear fell down from her eyes, the eyes that were changing from furious red to bleak lilac.

A deep breath found itself from her. The chains stopped trembling instantly. She stopped struggling, realising that she truly was alone, and there was no hope of getting out of here.

Not anymore.

"...No."

Her uncle would never want her to grief over him.

Her uncle would want her to keep struggling, to keep fighting, even if it was a loosing battle, he would never want her to give up.

"No."

The room's temperature began to rise. Her body started to shake, but this time, it wasn't out of sadness. It was out of pure rage.

The chains began to melt. And she was too fatigued, too angry, to realise that it melted because of her.

Her uncle would want her to find a way out of here. He would want her to believe that there was a way out of here.

He would never want her to stay where she was, surrounded by these kinds of people.

He would want her to be free.

He would want her to _live._

Deep, dark red met fiery, glowing yellow.

She would not let this woman break her. Never. She would fight. She would continue to fight until she could no longer breathe.

She would continue to fight whatever was thrown at her. She would charge into thousands of enemies with no weapon whatsoever and have faith that she would win.

She would keep fighting for her freedom.

Because that was what her uncle would've wanted.

The chains broke. She stood up. She let out a scream of rage.

"My, my." A chuckle devoid of happiness. "You really are Raven's child, aren't you?"

Crimson eyes widened, seeing what was planted on the woman's face. A sinister grin.

"You're almost as strong as I am."

A bright blinding pain, unlike anything she'd ever felt before, festered in her stomach. Maybe the woman had punched her. Maybe she had kicked her. Maybe she had used some kind of powerful dark magic.

Whatever it was: It sent her motionless, breathless, powerless. She couldn't sense anything except for this. Everything felt wrong. Everything _hurt._

She couldn't see anything. Her eyes were clenched shut, too overwhelmed by everything.

She couldn't hear her ragged breathing, it _pained_ her to take even a single breath.

She couldn't move, not willingly.

She couldn't think.

She could only feel this immense pain, and her attacker's voice as she said one last thing before everything became dark yet again.

"Almost."

* * *

 **Author's Notes : First of all, I apologize for the late update, I had lots of issues regarding, well... life. But I can promise you that, since most of these issues that I've been dealing with have been somewhat toned down and I don't have to fully immerse** **myself in it anymore, I'll hopefully be able to upload more frequently.**

 **...Hopefully.**

 **Secondly, what do you think of this chapter? We finally get to know where Yang is and what happened to her, and, Adam finally appeared! Yay! I'm guessing none of you thought Yang's kidnapped. Haha! What a twist!**

 **You're probably asking so many things right now. Like, why is Yang kidnapped? Who is that woman? Why couldn't Blake remember anything? What will happen to Yang? Will Yang be okay?!** _ **What's going on?!**_

… **Meh, I _could_ tell you that everything will be fine, but that would mean that I'm lying… **

**So… yeah… everything's on fire.**

 **... Have a nice day.**


	13. The Way He treats Her

The hospital floor was ghost-quiet -almost hollowing in fact- and so very dark, even if some of the lights were turned on.

The only person who could walk through these doors with no fear whatsoever were either so very brave or so very stupid.

The silence was so great that, without even trying, one could hear the crickets chirping, the clock ticking, and the heart monitor beeping.

But, alas, everything must end, and in this case, the silence was broken. It was broken by the joyous laughter that came from the only room that still had its lights on.

Blake Belladonna's room.

It wasn't the type of laughter that would stir other patients from their slumber, but that didn't mean someone didn't cringe at the sound of it.

And in this case, that someone was Adam Taurus.

In that particular room, a dark-haired teenage girl who was a patient and a slightly older red-haired teenage boy sat face-to-face at the wooden chairs provided by the hospital staff, the small round table being the only object separating those two kids.

Blake laughed as if she'd never done so before, one hand clutching her stomach and the other wiping away the tears of happiness from her eyes.

Meanwhile, Adam looked back and forth between his companion and the door, scared that one of the nurses or patients would barge in at any moment and scold them for creating a ruckus. But nonetheless, his lips still twitched upwards, because even he couldn't say that it wasn't funny.

"Be quiet," he half-whispered half-chuckled as the laughter finally started to die down, his head lowering in some sort of embarrassment. "You'll wake up others."

Meanwhile, the other teenager was still in the midst of trying not to die by laughing too much. "I-I'm sorry," she wheezed in-between her laughter, wiping away more of her fresh tears. "It's just -you told them to _step_ off and then you actually _stepped_ them."

Adam had told her the story of his first day after he got promoted to the chief. Apparently, some of the workers were displeased by the situation, especially since he was still young, and managed to say some rude things to him.

So, being himself, Adam had punished them officially by cutting their paychecks, but not before he publically humiliated them using puns, and a good one at that.

"Well," the brave and heroic police officer grunted while pouting childishly, crossing his arms. "It's not my fault they disrespected me!" He used hand gestures as he continued. "I may be young, but I am perfectly able to do my job!"

The next few minutes consisted of Blake trying her best to stop her laughing fit and Adam watching her with a small smile and a sheepish look, still scared that they would get scolded.

When she was calm -although her lips were still curved into a large smile- her fingers traced over one of her black mane that covered her face, playing with it. "I'm still a little surprised that you were even given the position."

She didn't know how long she'd been awake at this point. After their emotional reunion, they'd been telling each other about what had happened in their time apart from each other.

Blake mostly told him about Beacon High School: She talked about her friends. Ruby, the child prodigy that loved sweets and engineering. Weiss, the so-called Ice Queen. And many more, such as Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora, and Ren.

She also told him about some of the… interesting teachers that she'd come across. Such as Port with his stories that could put a caffeinated Nora to sleep in seconds, not to mention Oobleck with his way of speaking that was too much for anyone to handle, so much so that even Weiss gave up on trying to write any of his words down.

Adam had soaked in every detail of her stories, not once showing signs of disinterest, always reacting rather playfully towards her.

And now, it was his turn to tell her stories.

He told her about him joining the police a month after she'd left her home, at the age of 12. He told her how he'd done so by faking his age, and, much to her surprise, it worked.

He told her about his first mission as a police. There had been a call reporting child abuse, and he had done more than simply handle it. He had taken quite a beating, especially since the abuser was in their mid-thirties, but in the end, the child was safe, and that was the only thing that mattered to him.

He told her about the many friends he'd gained during his time as the police, as well as the many 'non-friends' he'd unintentionally made.

It was quite relieving and enjoyable to be able to talk to him again.

In that room, they smiled at each other, not as a patient that had suffered memory-loss and a chief of the entirety of Menangerie, but as friends, no, _more._

To say it was enjoyable and relieving would be an understatement, now that Blake thought about it.

But something still bugged her. Well, the term 'bugged' would be incorrect, more like 'confused', and, with her curiosity peeking, she decided to ask her more-than-friend, "But how is that possible? You're still young -I mean, not that it's-"

He held out a hand, motioning her to stop, albeit with an understanding smile. "I know," was all he said. Blake couldn't help but wonder why his eyes squinted at his words, his eye color seemingly getting even darker than before.

She could tell that he was remembering… things. Things that he chose not to tell her. Things that she knew would be better for her not to know, and for him to forget.

Blake was the opposite of a fool. And she was far beyond being just 'clever'. She was many things, perceptive being one of them.

She knew that his time as a police officer was anything but sunshine and rainbows, and him being younger than all the other officers only made things even more difficult.

But, even after everything that he'd experienced, he didn't quit his job.

That's one of the many things about him that she admired: not giving up, no matter what, even if sometimes it did him harm than good, much to her displeasure.

The boy let out a breath as he looked away from her. "It takes a lot of work, you know," he said, his eyes shifting, his face the very definition of determination. "I took twice, maybe three times as many cases."

Words alone could never truly explain what he'd been through. His face, although showed a form of great strength and pride, also gave away hints of exhaustion, sadness, and many more.

Blake liked to think that the look on his face could somewhat explain the things he had to go through to be where he was now.

Not only that, but the way his eyebrows furrowed, his shoulders straightened, his hands clenched showed signs of the boy always being alert.

' _And I thought I was paranoid,'_ Blake thought off-handedly.

Blake could only look at him with a sympathetic glance, wordlessly telling him how sorry she was for everything that he'd been through -whatever those things were- and hope that he received that message.

Her hand traveled towards his, thumb gently rubbing the rough, calloused knuckles, praying that it soothed him. When he let out a deep sigh of content, she knew that she'd calm him down.

"So yeah," he said with a ghost of a smile on his lips, "that's sort of how I got to where I am today." He frowned ever so slightly as he added, "I do need to thank Miss Sienna for the most part, tho."

A chuckle slipped from her mouth. With her gold eyes widening, she said humorously, "I still can't believe it, tho, you've-"

"Become such an amazingly handsome and powerful person?" He grinned lopsidedly, leaning towards her. Blake pinched the bridge of his nose with a scowl, resulting in him leaning back quickly with a wholehearted laugh.

Afterwards, he cleared his throat, and pointed a finger towards the ceiling as he said matter-of-factly, "The secret is to skip school," which resulted in him getting another scowl and a light jab on his shoulder.

Blake might disapprove with some of his… ways of dealing with problems in life. She might chose a more passive, confrontational way of dealing with an issue while he was more active and aggressive.

Very aggressive.

But even so, nobody was perfect, and she still cared about him despite not agreeing with some of his way of thinking.

Her face softened, lips tugged upwards into a small smile as, without thinking, she said. "I missed you."

Suddenly, amber eyes widened, her face paling as she realised there was something not quite right with what she'd just said.

"I do too," he said, his eyes closing, leaning backwards, seemingly at peace with himself, unknowing the uncertainty that was written on the girl's face.

There was something very wrong with what she'd just said.

She hadn't meant it for him. Those words… it wasn't directed towards him. No…

It was for Yang.

Yang, the mystery girl, whose face she couldn't even remember, that had been plaguing her mind for seemingly eternity.

' _Why would I miss her?'_ she asked herself. ' _I meant to tell him that, why did I…? What kind of relationship does she have with me? What are we? Friends? More?!'_

Her thoughts grew more and more incoherent; curiosity and well-formed, logical questions morphing slowly into flat-out panicked gibberish as she made out scenarios in her head about how and why she might've thought this way about Yang, so much so that she didn't even hear Adam's voice calling out for her, asking her if anything was wrong.

Finally, her dark thoughts died down when she felt two strong hands firmly holding her shoulders, forcing her to look up to see worried charcoal-black eyes looking down at her.

"Blake? Tell me what's wrong. Please."

She bit her lip, wanting so much to let it all out, to finally tell someone about her dilemma.

But what would he think of her when she finally told him about… _her?_ Would he get mad at her? Would he just be disappointed? Or worse, would he call the doctors and tell them that she was completely insane?

"Blake."

That voice drew her out of her thoughts again, just like it did before, merely seconds ago.

Blake looked up, searching to find any drops of suspicion and many else that suggested he would act the way she didn't want him to.

But no, in his eyes, there was one thing and one thing only: Understanding.

Realising this, she closed her eyes and let out a shuddering breath, thinking, ' _This is going to be an ever longer night than I thought.'_

And finally, she opened her mouth with the intention to not just speak, but to tell him the truth about her thoughts of Yang.

* * *

Ruby looked at the results of her test as she walked down the corridor and towards the exit of the school building, being too swift and small to let anyone bump onto her.

The sounds that filled her ears were that of the students that were either talking or laughing and footsteps of said students. She chose to block those irritating noises and focus on the paper in front of her.

She got an A in history, something that she would usually be excited over, especially since history had always been a subject she struggled with.

Usually.

But, ever since she'd visited Blake yesterday at the hospital, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

Her phone buzz, tearing her away from her thoughts. Unsurprisingly, it was a message from her father.

 _C'mon Rubes, I don't have all day._

After typing in and sending a reply to her father, telling him that she was already on her way, the gears in her head started to spin again.

Being the daughter of Taiyang Xiao Long and Summer Rose, who were both police officers, and _good_ ones at that, she simply couldn't help but want to help others, even if they didn't want her to help them.

Her father had always told her that sometimes, she should let others work on their own problems, but she simply couldn't help herself.

Plus, this time, it was a different kind of problem.

She couldn't exactly explain why it was, but she just knew.

It was a gut-feeling.

And her father had told her many times to always trust her gut.

Speaking of which, the old man was just outside of school, parking his old car on the emptier side of the road to not bother anyone. Even from afar, she could still see his happy-go-lucky face as his head bobbed up and down and fingers tapping; most likely listening to some kind of metal music.

A small smile curled onto her face at the sight of her dad, but it disappeared when his yellow hair reminded her of Yang's.

She opened the door and immediately greeted him with a simple "Hey Dad."

His smile only grew wider when he saw the sight of his precious little girl. He started asking her about school and everything relating to it such as friends, teachers, assignments, boyfriends (to which she responded with a 'What?! No! Ew!') and many more.

But he knew that the events that had happened days ago still plagued her mind. She was more easily distracted. Her replies were shorter and less enthusiastic. And she didn't even perked up when he mentioned cookies.

He could only wait until she cracked. It could be tonight. It could be in another few days. It could even be in a few mo-

"Dad, I think there's something wrong."

… Or it could be now. Literally.

"Look," he heaved a sigh, blue eyes looking at the road, but mind elsewhere, "I know this is hard for you, for all of us," he paused for a moment, before continuing in a lower voice, "but trust me, Blake's a tough cookie, she'll heal," he heaved another sigh before ending his small speech with, "both psychically and emotionally."

Ruby blinked before frowning at that last comment, wondering what he could possibly mean when he said 'emotionally'.

' _I guess it is true that Yang and Blake were so close, but…'_

Unable to shake off the weirdness of it, the young brunette asked, "What do you mean?"

The blond cop look back and forth between his daughter and the road, doubling the confusion. "Well, from what I've heard, I thought that they were… you know… in a romantic relationshi-"

"What!?" the girl had shouted before he could even finish his sentence, greatly shocked when he clashed the words 'Yang and Blake' with 'Romantic.'

' _But… but!'_ yet slowly, that shock and confusion slowly turned into realization… and also still shock as well.

"Wait, so, they're not… _together_ together?" her father asked with a deeper frown, using the term that reminded the girl of Nora.

She frowned as well, trying to create sentences that make sense, and failing at it. "I mean, well, I guess, I guess they kinda sorta are together, they also do live with each other, even though Blake hates when someone lives with her, at least, that's what I thought, I mean, maybe... "

Taiyang's face softened, finally grasping the full situation of this through her unfinished sentences.

"Ruby."

The brunette, who, before, was rambling without a thought, trying to deny that the two of those girls were a couple without her knowing, stopped talking.

Conveniently for Tai, there was a red light just up ahead, and he stopped his car and faced his daughter, the only woman he loved that hadn't left him in any way.

Calmly, he stated, "The way they looked at each other."

As expected, the confused teenager frowned and only said, "What?"

A small ghost of a smile formed on his lips. Wanting his child to figure out the answer herself, and also to look aloof and mysterious, he repeated his words as he continued driving, the lights turning green. "The way they looked at each other."

The brunette, in response, made a noise that could be compared to one of a dying whale: groaning. ' _I hate it when he does this.'_

But his words stuck with her nonetheless. She tried her best to remember the exact way the two supposed friends looked at each other.

Yang was usually confident, charming, and not socially-awkward. She shone like the sun, brightening everyone around her's day, practically beaming with a great personality.

But when she was with Blake, it was as if the bright sun that was meant for everyone turned dimmer and dimmer, eventually morphing into nothing more than a candle for only one person.

And Blake was usually very reserved and rarely speak. She always hid herself in the comfort of her books, never wanting to come out of her shell, thinking that it wasn't too important for her to do so.

But when she was with Yang, she actually became a slightly more open person. She would sometimes voice her opinion on a certain subject. Other times she would even tell jokes in the form of sarcasm, one that was endearingly so.

In reality, those were small changes that she doubt everyone would know.

But she always secretly knew, and decided to let it slide, thinking it was nothing too serious.

Until now.

"Holy cow!" she shrieked with eyes so wide it might pop out of her face.

But, momentarily, he frowned and mumbled, "Language," but decided to let it slide, eyes looking up and finding that they were in another red light, stopping the car yet again.

"So?" he said only, confident in believing that his daughter knew what he was trying to coax from her.

Ruby, with no hint of uncertainty, said, "Dad… I think they're in love."

And he was glad they currently were stopping on another red light. Otherwise, because of that seemingly innocent statement, he would've accidentally crashed into something.

"Ruby… 'Love' is a very strong word," he warned her.

' _Believe me, I know from experience,'_ he wanted to add, but decided against it, knowing that his daughter wasn't ready for _that_ yet.

"But, they are! I know it! I can feel it!" she tried to convince him, gesturing with her arms, as if it would prove her point even more.

"They're still kids," said the blond, then, his eyes narrowed as he locked his ocean blue eyes with her silver ones, adding in a much softer tone, "you're still a kid too."

He said after sighing, words filled with wisdom that derived from painful experience, "You don't know what love is."

She pouted while answering, "I do know what love is."

At that sentence, he chuckled. He forgot that this was Ruby Rose, his sweet little girl that was too innocent and pure for the world.

He decided to entertain himself.

"Oh, really?" he asked with a hint of amusement, a gesture that would immediately be received by her daughter as a challenge. "What do you think love is?"

"W-well," she stammered, caught off-guard by the question, but soon regain her composure and cleared her head.

Only then did the image of the woman she felt as if she loved came into her head. After that image appeared, it wasn't hard for her to explain what love was. Or, at least, what it was to her.

The image of Weiss, that was.

"Love is... when you want that someone to be happy, even if it means that _you_ can't be happy... Love is when you feel their pain, sometimes, much more than they feel theirs. Love is when you know they're not perfect, but still accept and adore them anyways. Love is when you care about that person so deeply you start to wonder if you're going crazy. Love is when you want nothing but the best for _her_."

Silence consumed their small car. The father was still in shock by her daughter's words, while the daughter was internally slapping herself for giving away that not only did she love someone, but she loved a 'her'.

A girl.

She knew that the word 'love' was a pretty sensitive subject to bring up to her father. Especially after she learned from his workers about his first lover, who left him without a warning, and saw it first-hand herself, when her mother died.

Either her father would be extremely mad with her, telling her that she shouldn't have these feelings because it could ruin her life, saying that she should focus on her grades instead, or he could be sad-

"My thorny little rose is growing up."

…Or he could be a total 'dad' and started getting teary-eyed and emotional.

"Umm… what?" She tried to dismiss it by laughing it off, but when she looked at him again, all she could find in his dark blue eyes were anything but disapproval.

"Who's the lucky girl?" He grinned ear-to-ear, it honestly shocked her because not only did he approve of her dating a 'she', but he was getting excited about it as well. Almost, if not, more excited than she was herself.

"What? No one!" She squeaked with her darkened cheeks.

"Hmm…" He stroked his chin with his one hand, eyes narrowing, whether it was because he was thinking, or because he was driving, she didn't know. He acted like he was a police looking at a crime scene. And, if he were currently holding a cigarette the brunette might actually believe that he was. "It's that Schnee girl isn't it?"

"Wha- how do you know?!" She shut her eyes and cursed at her slip up, but quickly recovered and said while waving her two hands a little too cartoonishly with her still flushed face, "I mean, no, we're just friends!"

Her father, however, didn't listen to her. Instead, he just slowly nodded with his serious face, muttering, "Hmm… yeah, I approve," uncaring whether she heard or not. "She's well-mannered, smart, and very… lady-like," he smirked as he looked directly into her eyes and said, "something I wish you were more of."

"Hey!"

After the long, yet comfortable silence, Tai decided to ask, "So… since when have you two been together?" with a naughty grin that made him look far younger than he actually was.

With her face as red as her name, she still denied, "Dad! We're _not_ together together!"

If he wasn't driving, he would've raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay, fine," he said with a chuckle.

He stole a glance, hoping to find the sight of his daughter either flustered, embarrassed, or plain mad. But, he was surprised and saddened to see his daughter looking down in distraught, and, without thinking too much of it, he knew what she must be thinking about.

"Listen, Rubes, I'm okay with it, really. Love is… well, it's complicated. And sometimes, people just hurt the ones they love."

"Dad… Yang would never do that."

The father didn't know what he was more surprised of; his daughter's tone, which was so solemn and convincing he felt like he had no choice but to believe her, or who she was speaking about.

Yang, the one accused of attacking Kali Belladonna, attempting to murder Blake Belladonna, and faking her own identity.

"Sweetie," he said, trying to convince his daughter, "you have no idea what horrible things people could do, with the influence of-"

"Yang would never do that." Her tone was even bolder and more confident than before.

It made him wonder just what kind of person this 'Yang' was.

What kind of person would earn Ruby's respect, admiration, and trust in a span of a few days.

"I know her, Dad, I really do," she said, trying to convince him to believe her. "She really cares about Blake, so it just _doesn't_ make sense for her to… do all of those things." She visibly shuddered, her eyes starting to water, making his eyes wide and wondering even more just who Yang was.

"Dad, please believe me when I say that something's not right."

And with that, all of his years of experience as a law-enforcer came rushing back to him. Like second nature, his hands began to grip the steering wheel strongly and his eyes hardened, leaving no room for doubt, only filled with cold and hard calculation.

"What are you suggesting?" he demanded.

She blinked a few times, surprised to see him acting the way he was. But she took it as a good sign.

It meant that he believed her.

"I…" She let out a shuddering breath, trying to compose herself, knowing that panicking won't get her anywhere and he needed to truly know every detail of her… theory, for a lack of better term. "I don't know, Dad, but that Adam guy… I don't trust him."

His gaze hardened with an emotion she couldn't pinpoint. He looked away briefly and said in a soft, low tone, "Me neither."

Hearing his words, she couldn't help but say more to herself than to him, "So you do believe me."

When he immediately looked away, his expression forming into one of embarrassment and mortification, she beamed with prideful joy and mischievousness. "Oh my gosh! Just admit it! Your daughter is super smart!" She crossed her arms and tilted her head up with arrogance.

"Apparently, super annoying as well," he muttered under his breath, but his comment didn't go unnoticed by the small girl.

"Hey!" she said after a gasp, not quite believing what he'd just said.

He rolled his eyes with a smile, before turning back into his 'cop-mode'.

"But…" he paused for a moment. "You're right. It seems… off. I should tell Ghira about it-"

"No!" she quickly said, waving her arms, fear striking her features. "Don't tell anyone!" She pointed her finger towards him, silver eyes narrowing down dangerously.

"Why not?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"They might be working for him!" she stated ominously. But Tai knew who 'he' was, what the man didn't get was what 'he' got to do with this and why he shouldn't tell anyone.

However, before he could question anything or voice his thoughts, she voluntarily explained, "Dad, have you noticed that these… cops that saved Blake and her parents aren't from Vale? They all work with Adam! We shouldn't trust the police with this! We should be extremely careful!"

She froze as soon as she realised that she'd been shouting, towards her father of all people. Her nervousness grew tenfold when she saw his face.

He continued to look at her without saying a word, the action making her self-conscious about her… well, everything. After a few minutes of what felt like being mentally violated, she decided to half-shout half-ask, "What?"

He blinked a few times, as if her word finally led him into realising what was happening. "No, no," he said with a voice that could barely be heard. "Just thinking…"

Her eyebrow was raised. "About…?"

He looked at her with a look of longing as he weakly said, "About you."

"Me?" she asked back, taken aback, wondering what he meant by that.

"Yeah, you-" He bit his lip before letting out a breath with closed eyes. When he opened them again, Ruby could see how broken he truly was.

"You really are her daughter."

Her eyes widened, and she quickly looked away, wiping away the tears that threatened to escape her eyes.

She was not ready for that comment.

She was not ready to remember her mother.

Not yet.

"Thanks, Dad," she forced herself to say after she regained some form of composure, looking at him and offering him the best smile she could put on her face, wanting to cheer him up.

He returned the smile. She could tell that it was forced, but it was still somewhat acceptable, especially since he'd faked his smile for her.

"No problem, Kid."

For a couple of minutes that felt like hours, they both chose to stay in silence, coping with memories of her.

It wasn't after a while did her father, with a hint of playfulness in his voice, asked, "So, did you make a move with Little Miss Schnee yet?"

"Dad!" she squealed, voice so high-pitched with mortification that it could break a wine glass.

"Well," he stated nonchalantly with a shrug, "have you?"

She, after looking away in embarrassment and annoyment, replied in a whisper-like voice, "No…"

With a large, self-loving grin, he asked another question. "Do you want me to teach you how?"

After thinking about it internally, she said -well, more like asked, "Yes?"

He visibly beamed, and the brunette could've sworn she saw stars in those big blue eyes. "Aw, yes!" he fist-pumped, thankfully, only with one hand. "Get ready to see Taiyang the lady-killer."

Hearing that name, Ruby cringed and commented, although not loud enough for him to hear, "Yeah… You're killing me just by hearing that name."

But then, she felt something… off.

Silver eyes scanned the area around them, finding it odd that they were in this particular area.

"Dad… where are we?"

The man's eyes widened, looking around, shocked to see that there were no buildings, instead, there were trees.

He chuckled sheepishly, head ducking low, knowing that his daughter wouldn't particularly like his answer. "We're in… Forever Fall…"

If Ruby was drinking at that moment, she definitely would've spit the liquid out. If Taiyang wasn't the one at fault at the moment, he definitely would've laughed at his kid's reaction.

"What!?"

"I…" he tried to come up with a reason, "sorta didn't pay attention to where we were going since we were talking about, you know" he ducked his head even lower, especially since hearing his excuse coming out of his mouth, he realised how horrible that excuse was, "all _that_ stuff…"

Ruby couldn't believe what she was hearing. She literally could not believe it.

"Dad. It will take us an hour to get back to Vale, _two_ including traffic!" she stated, horrified.

"...Yup," he could only say with a chuckle, one that screamed 'I know I messed up please don't kill me.'

"Dad," she said, her tone so cold Weiss would definitely be proud of her.

Her father swallowed a heavy lump in his throat before answering, "Yeah?" his voice a few octaves higher than normal, making him sound like a teenage kid.

She looked at him, dead in the eyes, and said with no hesitation nor any and all signs of her words being a joke, "You're grounded."

"...What?!"

* * *

 **Author's notes : There we go, folks! This is the first time we really get a glimpse of many things some of you (probably) have been wondering.**

 **I changed Adam a bit here, I've always find his tone of speaking, his words, and his entire personality in the canon world to be a bit cliche. I won't change his personality completely, I'm just... adding some more things into him to, hopefully, make him more dangerous as the antagonist and entertaining as a character.**

 **Don't worry, he's still evil, but just not that kind of evil. His true motives will be revealed in future chapters.**

 **Also, we get a glimpse of Ruby and Taiyang's personality in which I believe, is how they actually acted towards each other in canon. Taiyang's a cute goofy guy, I had lots of fun writing him as well as his interaction with his Lil' Thorny Rose.**

 **So, all in all, I hope this chapter is somewhat decent or more. I hope you enjoyed reading it. I also hope that you're happy right now, and if you're not, then... re-watch your favorite show! That _always_ works for me!**

 **Cheers!**


	14. An Announcement

**Author's Notes : Alright, I'm gonna be… straightforward with you guys.**

 **Writing this story is not** _ **at all**_ **fun for me anymore.**

 **It's worse than writing Head Over Heels, which was the first story I've ever written, and it included a love triangle between Sun, Yang, and Blake, even though I wasn't _at all_ interested in that OT3 in the first place.**

 **And… I don't want to do this anymore, I simply don't. I've unintentionally created a story which I cannot write.**

 **Stories including other worlds, other creatures, hybrids, magics, transformation, and many more.**

 **The idea itself is great. And I believe that if I wanted to, I can craft a story revolving those things wonderfully.**

 **But that's just it: I don't want to. Not anymore.**

 **I'm sorry if you guys enjoyed this story and are sad because it's ending on such a cliff-hanger. It's just hard for me.**

 **However, there is a good news to this.**

 **While I will quit writing this story, I won't be quitting writing entirely. In fact, I'll post a brand new story: Fans and Girlfriends.**

 **The concept is far simpler than this story, I think that just by reading the summary, you'll get what that story is all about.**

 **It's a Bumblebee story, and I'm planning on adding Whiterose in it later on. Much like this story.**

 **The writing-style is also pretty much the same as this story. So if you like reading this story because of the writing, I can guarantee that you'll like that story too.**

 **Wait, hold on, in general, I think that, if you like this story, you'll like that one too. Just... give that one a shot. Because writing that story is far more entertaining than writing this one. And I won't make the same mistake with this one, which is creating a story that I can't write. I promise that I'll try my best to keep things simple, but meaningful.**

 **I'm sorry if this isn't as satisfying or as long as you'd all hoped. I've... never really done this before.**

 **So… um… I'm not good with goodbyes. So I'll just say... I hope you're all doing well, thank you for reading this story, and... See you later.**


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